Fūrinkazan
by Hefster
Summary: Sakura and Naruto are fleeing from Konoha forces as Danzo takes control of the village. Betrayed and left alone, Naruto and Sakura try to live peacefully amongst one of their nation’s greatest enemies but their past will catch up to them eventually
1. Tactical Disposition

**Welcome to my newest story. This is a NaruSaku story in which I will try to incorporate many elements ranging from betrayal, romance, war, resistance movement, etc.**

**Main Villains: Danzo and Otogakure, Akatsuki won't surface until way later and will play more of a secondary role.**

**Locations: Konoha and Iwagakure**

**I found the name Fūrinkazan in Wikipedia while browsing Sun Tzu's Art of War. Great book by the way, I can only recommend it. Anyways, Fūrinkazan literally means, "Wind, Forest, Fire, and Mountain" (if Wikipedia is correct, which I assume it is) and I figured it's a fitting name for this story considering what I have planned. I hope you enjoy this story.**

**Disclaimer: The original content does not belong to me. Nuff said. Rated-M because I say so.  
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Summary: Sakura and Naruto are fleeing from Konoha forces as Danzo takes control of the village. Betrayed and left alone, Naruto and Sakura settle to live a life of peace amongst one of their nation's greatest enemies but their past will catch up to them eventually.

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**Fūrinkazan**

Prologue + Chapter 1

"Tactical Dispositions"

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Prologue:

It is a dark cold night in Konoha and Sakura was twisting and turning uneasily in her bed as she tried to find much needed sleep. She sighed as her eyes snapped open again. She stared up into her dark ceiling and frowned at being unable to fall asleep. She turned her head to spy at her alarm clock next to her bed and growled seeing the time.

It was 4:23 in the morning and she had to get up for work in less than two hours. Grumbling, she slipped out of her bed and walked out of her bedroom to enter the bathroom. Muttering obscenities under her breath as she walked through the dark hallway, she failed to realize that she was being watched from the darkness of her apartment. The dark cloaked figure hid every feature except a pair of eyes emanating power underneath smooth silken black hair.

Sakura winced upon turning on the light inside the bathroom and she shielded her eyes waiting for them to adjust to the sudden brightness. Sighing, she stepped inside and closed the doors before lifting her nightgown and sitting down on the toilet. She stared off into space as she relieved herself when the sudden sound of paper rustling caught her attention. Pulling a kunai out of nowhere, her eyes instantly darted around the bathroom.

Her attention was drawn to the bathroom door as she saw a piece of folded paper get pushed through the tiny slit between the door and the floor. Sakura frowned and quickly finished, wiping herself dry and hesitantly approached the door. "Who's there?" She asked quietly with a hint of fear in her voice.

Not receiving an answer, Sakura placed her ear against the door trying to listen for whoever was outside in her dark hallway. She couldn't hear a single noise and Sakura's heart started pounding in her chest as she reached with a shaking hand for the piece of paper. Holding the paper in her hand, Sakura quickly stepped away from the door and prepared herself for someone possibly barging inside to attack her.

She breathed heavily as her adrenaline rushed through her system and she was beginning to think that moving out from her parents was not such a good idea at her young age of sixteen. Minutes passed with her body pressed against the wall and still nothing had happened. She tip toed back to the bathroom door and took a steadying breath before carefully and silently opening up the door after having switched off the light.

She peaked out and quickly slapped the light switch for the hallway. She saw nothing out of the ordinary and after carefully exploring her entire apartment, Sakura found herself alone. She checked her apartment door and still found it locked from the inside, deadbolt and everything still in place. She frowned and thought that she might have dreamed this when she remembered the piece of paper in her hand.

She quickly walked into her bedroom after making sure every door and window was still locked securely. She sat down in her bed and unfolded the piece of paper and started reading.

_Darkness is ascending upon Konoha. Do not trust anyone! __Protect the heir by following your heart._

_A Friend._

Sakura was confused and yelped in a panicked surprise as the piece of paper started burning and crumbled to ash in her hands as it destroyed itself leaving no trace behind. Not understanding the message at all, Sakura grew worried and concerned. Someone had been in her apartment without her knowledge and without leaving a single trace.

Trying to shove the message into the back of her mind, Sakura took another glance at her alarm clock only to realize it was time for her to get dressed. Sighing, she walked back to the bathroom to take her shower. The message however, didn't leave her a peace of mind as she constantly repeated it. She had no idea who this 'heir' was and what was meant by following her heart. In the end, Sakura opted to forget everything about it and not mention this incident to anyone. She didn't want to worry her parents about a mysterious message that could be nothing more than a sick joke.

Chapter 1

It was a dark room and he sat in his little chair behind his desk and his lone healthy yet aging eye fell upon the subordinate, one of his many drones as he liked to call them. "What is it? Did you complete your mission?"

"Yes Master," the subordinate replied kneeling not daring to look up into his Leader's face. His expression was devoid of any emotions and his eyes were firmly set onto the wood planks that made up the floor. "The final dosage was delivered today."

"Excellent," the man said and leaned back into the chair. With his healthy hand he massaged the stump of his other, a painful reminder that he had failed once before. "Were you able to eliminate the untainted sake from the room as well?"

"Yes Master."

"Good," the brooding man cooed and slowly pushed himself with the help of his cane out of the chair. "This is excellent work my child. By tonight, after she takes the final dosage, the Hokage will be compliant to my orders."

"Master," the young man spoke up stunned when he felt his Leader's hand come to rest on his head. It was something that rarely happened and was meant as a reward to the troops. It meant that their Master recognized them; their skills and their absolute obedience. To this day there had only been one before him that was honored with this recognition and that person had long passed away. The blessed drone had given his life for their Leader and he, who had always thrived to achieve such recognition, would do the same in a heart beat. That was how deep his devotion ran for his Master.

"Rise my child and walk with me," the dark voice ordered his subordinate. "Tell me Sai, how did you manage to rid the Hokage of her sake?"

Sai rose to his feet and followed obediently, "I told her apprentice Sakura Haruno that the Hokage was hiding more sake from her." A small smile formed on Sai's lips only to disappear again quickly. Feeling the eyes of his Leader upon him, Sai apologized. "I am sorry Danzo-sama, it will not happen again. It is difficult to stop these fake expressions from appearing after having trained and using them on a daily basis."

"Make sure you do not slip up again. I will not tolerate emotions within Root, do I make myself clear?" Danzo growled and let his anger roll into his voice. He suppressed a smile as he saw Sai flinch visibly, "I have a new mission for you Sai. Contact Orochimaru and inform him that we will strike in one week, he knows the rest."

"As you wish Danzo-sama," Sai bowed and vanished in a splash of ink.

"And now, I just need to find a way to ensure that this troublesome apprentice of hers does not get in my way." Danzo muttered and snapped with his fingers. Another of his Root drones appeared in front of him. "You will take care of her, is that understood?"

"Yes Lord Danzo," the female bowed. "Do you wish her to be eliminated or simply subdued until later?"

"Keep her busy, keep her away from the Hokage, and keep her away from the demon child. I do not care how you do it but keep her alive. We will need her medic skills in the future and she also holds the summoning contract of the Slugs. Sakura Haruno is too valuable to kill off. Just like this pathetic village, she will come over to our side once she hears of what the demon child has done to their beloved Hokage." Danzo laughed and dismissed his drone with a wave of a hand as he continued walking through the ANBU Root headquarters. The ever present screams and cries for their mothers of the children his Root members abducted regularly played his triumphant victory march as he limped deeper into the corridors of the hidden base.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"Shishou let's go already," Sakura waited patiently in front of the Hokage's desk. "Tsunade-sama, everyone is waiting for us. We have to get going before they cast the genjutsu on the hot spring without us. You know as well as I do that it will prevent us from entering once its cast. Jiraiya-sama is due back in town today and therefore we can't enjoy the hot spring without Kurenai-sensei's help."

"Bah! That old pervert will realize the second he gets there that the hot springs are under a genjutsu. He is a Sannin for crying out loud, not some Genin. You go and have fun Sakura," Tsunade muttered as she leaned on her desk and looked at her apprentice with disinterest.

"Fine, I will stay here as well." Sakura replied coldly and flopped down into the chair that was standing in front of the desk. "What shall we do then? Maybe go over the shinobi detail that is to accompany you to Suna for the Chunin exams?"

Tsunade sighed, "Just go to the hot springs. You have been talking all week about wanting to go, so go already."

"I am not going if Jiraiya-sama is going to peep regardless. I don't want to show up in one of his perverted books or be used for any inspiration." Sakura said as she crossed her arms defiantly over her chest and stared at her teacher.

"Alright, I won't push you." Tsunade admitted defeat and unlocked the desk drawer. She pulled out a single red bottle and ripped the wax seal from the cork before opening it for the first time.

"Where the hell did you get that from?" Sakura almost screamed in anger ripping the bottle out of Tsunade's hands before her teacher had a chance to take a swig from it. "I thought I had destroyed every last one. Shizune even helped me find all of your secret locations. I tell you Shishou, someone that hides their liquor from others is an alcoholic that has lost control over their addiction. You're too old to keep behaving as if you were still in your twenties."

Tsunade's eye twitched, "YOU!" She angrily stated and pointed with the finger at Sakura as she tried to pry the bottle back. "You are in so much trouble Sakura. Hand me back that bottle right now before I bust you down to Genin rank and ensure you'll never get a single mission again… EVER! I'll have you teach in the Academy, I'll have you clean the public shit houses in all of Konoha… hand me back that sake bottle."

"No," Sakura answered and screwed the cork back onto the bottle. "And you can't threaten me as if I were Naruto. You need me in the hospital, you know it and I know it."

"Damn," Tsunade muttered in anger and leaned back into her chair. She crossed her arms and pouted. Her pout turned into a smirk. "Speaking of Naruto, have you confessed your true feelings to him yet?"

Sakura looked flustered, "I-I don't know what you're talking about Shishou."

"Oh is that so Sakura?" Tsunade placed her elbows onto the desk and leaned on the palms of her hands as they supported her head. She looked at her student, "You know Sakura… You should tell him soon. Your competition is slowly growing. Hinata is no longer the only one that has caught an interest in our favorite blond knucklehead. There are others and they aren't as shy as dear Hinata is."

Sakura blinked and silently cursed as she felt a blush forming and tried to hide it under a mask of anger and indifference. "I still don't know what you are talking about Hokage-sama."

"Hokage-sama?" Tsunade raised a puzzled brow before resounding laughter escaped her. "Sakura, Sakura, Sakura… you can't fool me. I know how you look at him. Did you really think I did not notice you hovering around him when he trained with Kakashi and Yamato several weeks ago? Did you really think I did not notice your silent tears that you spilled every time he lay on the operating table? Or how you stayed in his room never leaving his side, and only going home right before he would wake up so that he didn't know you were by his side all that time?"

Sakura blinked in shock and turned it to anger, "How dare you claim to know these ludicrous feelings I am supposed to have? Like I said," Sakura pouted as her short burst of anger vaporized into thin air. The pinkette looked away offended and closed her eyes as if she refused to continue to listen to this conversation. "You have no idea what you are talking about Sensei."

Tsunade laughed again, "Sakura the fact that you just got angry with me is only confirming what I have been telling you already. Regardless, don't you at least want to know who else has caught interest of your dear Naruto-kun?" Tsunade asked and waited for Sakura's curiosity to waver. She didn't have to wait long and saw one of Sakura's eyes open briefly and make eye contact.

"Maybe."

Tsunade smiled and leaned back into her chair, "It will cost you though… that sake bottle you are holding hostage." Another quiet moment passed between the two and without acknowledging or turning to face Tsunade, Sakura's hand that was holding the sake bottle shot out and placed it onto Tsunade's desk.

"First you tell me everything. I don't want to listen to your slurring and try to decipher what the hell you are talking about."

"It's a deal," Tsunade clapped her hands and bobbed happily in her chair like a small child as the thought of sake running over her taste buds rushed through her mind. She coughed into her hand and collected herself, "Where was I? Oh yes, I remember. You were deciding to act coy with me and pretend I had not noticed your growing affection for Naruto-kun."

"I already told you that you were mistaken." Sakura interjected and seethed in anger, "You were going to tell me who else is falling for Naruto."

"Aha, I knew it." Tsunade burst out. "You just admitted that you are falling for Naruto." Tsunade giggled as if she had struck a vein of gold, "I can't wait to tell Shizune." Tsunade felt a sudden killer intent upon her and she cowered a little, "I'll keep it to myself. Not a word to anyone, I promise."

The killer intent vanished but Tsunade could still feel it lingering in the background. She shuddered a little at the massive amount that Sakura had exuberated. Deciding to steer her student's attention towards her rivals, Tsunade cleared her throat once again. "As I was saying, dear Hinata is no longer the only one that has her eyes set on Naruto. I know of several senior kunoichi that aren't that much older, that have gotten interested in your beloved Naruto. Then there is also you dear friend Ino. She seems to be the most aggressive one of the lot, actively flirting with him and all."

Sakura let out a very unladylike snort, "As if those bimbos can catch his attention. His eyes are only looking at me."

"_Resorting to name calling already, my, my Sakura have you grown jealous quickly,"_ Tsunade thought amused. Her hand took hold of her sake bottle as the urge to drink it was threatening to overwhelm her. She didn't know where those delicate red bottles came from, but they were the best tasting sake she had ever had. She just hoped it wasn't Jiraiya's way of telling her that he had still feelings for her. Although she admitted, the job of Hokage can get quite lonely. _"Perhaps I should give that old pervert one last chance."_

Tsunade was pulled out of her thoughts as she slowly pried the cork out of the sake bottle. "Sensei, I have been wondering but where are those red bottles coming from? You have been receiving them for three weeks now and they always appear on your desk. Not even Shizune-san knows where they are coming from and more importantly from whom. Don't you think it's dangerous to just drink some random out-of-the-blue sake that mysteriously appeared on your desk? What if it's poisoned?"

Tsunade snorted as she took her first swig and instantly felt her urge to drink more of this delicious sweet tasting nectar lower a little. "Sakura, you know as well as I do that my body automatically fights poisons and other toxins. In fact, I have been exposed to so many toxins and poisons that I should practically be immune to them all. You're the same way, just like Shizune. Haven't you been wondering what all those injections were for during your first year of apprenticeship under me?"

"I admit, I was curious to know the purpose and Shizune-san explained it to me. I was furious that you didn't explain it to me yourself, especially the risks involved. But I learned to understand your reasoning behind it, yet don't you think it's still dangerous? What if it's a new poison that you haven't been exposed to yet?"

"Bah," Tsunade spat and took another strong swig. "You worry too much Sakura. If it were a strong poison, I would have detected it already and weak poisons, even if they are based on new compounds will be analyzed by my cells automatically and the proper immunities would be put in place. But you know that as well, so I suggest you leave me and protect your droll boyfriend from the claws of the female kunoichi population."

"For the last time, I do not like Naruto," Sakura screamed and turned a bright pink in her face. "In fact, I am going to look for him now and pound him into the ground."

"You do that Sakura, but remember to explain to him why he suddenly was subjugated to your wrath and why he shouldn't look at other women." Tsunade laughed as she watched her student stomp out of her office and slamming the door behind her. "I should tell Jiraiya of this development once he returns from his mission to find information on Akatsuki's leader."

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Sakura had been looking for Naruto everywhere. She had checked the training grounds he liked to frequent. She also checked with Ichiraku's, but Ayame had said that they hadn't seen Naruto in a few days. Sakura had then decided to check his apartment, only to find it deserted of his presence. In fact it had looked like he hadn't been in his apartment for a while because it actually was still clean. Sakura frowned as she stepped into the road as she left Naruto's apartment building and looked up as she squinted her eyes against the sun. "Where the hell is that idiot," she muttered and trotted aimlessly down the road.

Sakura was deep in thought, thinking about the latest revelations concerning her idiot blond teammate and the fact that more and more competition was keeping a close eye on him. Apparently showing interest in him that even the Hokage had known about and she didn't. "Competition… yeah right," Sakura muttered in anger and shook her head as she weaved her way through the crowded road. "They can be best described as an annoyance and not competition."

Sakura sighed as she continued talking to herself, "Why do I even care if they like him. It's not like I do too."

"**But ****we do love him! He is ours!"** Inner Sakura suddenly yelled up and making herself heard after having been quite for years.

Sakura blinked in surprise, _"What the hell? Where the fuck did you come from? And shut up! You don't know what you are talking about."_

"**Keep telling yourself that,"** Inner Sakura started saying when her voice turned frightened and panicky. **"Hey what the hell are you doing… stop this. No, don't send me down there again,"** Inner Sakura pleaded. **"It's dark and lonely down there. All I get to do is watch you be stupid. You can have him, if you just tell him how you feel. Don't let others take him…"**

Sakura smiled and sighed as her mind fell quiet again. She had quickly dispatched off her inner persona by condemning her again to the depths of her mind. Sakura had thought she had succeeded for good back when she had first started her apprenticeship under Tsunade. "What does my blasted subconscious know anyways? She doesn't know how I truly feel." Sakura quietly growled as she passed a young couple on a date and instantly felt bangs of jealousy.

Confused at her reaction Sakura reached the local BBQ pit and looked inside as she continued walking by. She was already passed the windows, when something in her mind clicked. She stopped mid stride and frowned, _"That couldn't have been Naruto in there. He doesn't like to eat BBQ that much."_

"_Nah, I must be seeing things,"_ Sakura thought and shrugged as she shook her head dismissing the idea of having seen Naruto. She continued but only got as far as a couple steps when a nagging suspicion slowly grew in the pit of her stomach and forced her to stop again. _"Perhaps I should go back and look again, just to be sure."_

Sakura quickly turned around and pressed her face against the window, while blocking the sun from putting a glare on the window and keeping her from viewing inside. And low and behold, her eyes fell upon the back of a blond head. It looked like Naruto but Sakura wasn't sure. She watched and frowned as she saw the blond man raise his arms behind his head and Sakura guessed the person was smiling and suddenly saw Naruto do the same thing in her mind's eye. _"Only Naruto does that,"_ Sakura mentally screamed in her mind and was furious. Feelings of betrayal cursed through her that quickly turned to frustration and anger.

Breathing heavily, she pushed herself away from the window and headed towards the door. She pushed it open and was greeted by the hostess. Ignoring the friendly greeting, Sakura's eyes were trained on the booth in which the blond man sat. Her eyes widened at seeing the blond man being somebody else and she let out a calming breath that she hadn't known she was holding. "Thank goodness that wasn't Naruto," she said and turned around to look at a bewildered looking hostess.

"Oh sorry," Sakura chuckled uneasily. "I thought I had seen a friend but I was wrong."

The hostess looked at Sakura and smiled, "I understand. I actually can understand you, I had thought I had seen my boyfriend cheat on me once too in a restaurant. Luckily for you, you realized your mistake before you did something…" The hostess stopped and looked embarrassed before continuing, "Before you did something humiliating."

Sakura grew angry at the assumption of the hostess assuming Sakura was looking for her boyfriend. She yelled at the hostess, "Why the hell is everyone saying that I like Naruto. Damnit he is just a stupid teammate and nothing more. He is not my boyfriend."

"_Sakura stop lying to yourself and admit your feelings for him. Jealousy doesn't suit you,"_ Tsunade's voice entered her mind and she whirled around expecting to find the Hokage standing behind her but Sakura didn't see anyone.

"Oh I am terribly sorry. I just assumed you were looking for your boyfriend after you looked so angry just a minute ago," the hostess apologized. "Is everything alright Miss?" She asked at seeing Sakura's confused look after having whipped around unexpectedly.

Sakura turned to the hostess and shook her head. A slight frown on her brow, "I am sorry I thought I heard someone I knew." Sakura looked at the hostess and smiled, "I am terribly sorry for the inconvenience."

Sakura bowed and turned to walk outside but when her hand reached for the door, Naruto's loud laughter resounded through the restaurant, which prompted Sakura to whirl around. Her eyes angrily scanned every booth with a dangerous fire lit in them. Sakura's vision fell upon a dark booth at the very end of the restaurant and the fire in her eyes fanned out of control.

The hostess shrunk under the threatening view of seeing Sakura transform into a raging, hormone driven, and jealous being with eyes burning of anger. The hostess followed Sakura's line of sight and she saw a single blond sitting at the table and across from him sat a blonde female with long plated hair. The man, who must have been Naruto was sitting with his back towards the door and was currently laughing rather loudly as the girl across from him smiled as they must have been sharing a private joke.

The hostess grew wary and turned to look at Sakura, only to realize the raging pinkette, whose demeanor screamed out to inflict unimaginable pain upon said blond was stomping towards that vary exact booth. The hostess quickly rushed after Sakura and hastily and quietly tried to calm her down, "Miss please, don't do anything you might regret later. And for the love of all that is holy please do not destroy this establishment. My boss will have my head."

The hostess's only answer was the grinding of Sakura's teeth and the young woman swallowed in fear at imagining the outcome of this encounter. After all, finding their boyfriend in a restaurant with another woman can drive someone up the wall and into a fit of rage that can't be controlled.

Sakura reached the booth Naruto and Ino were sitting in and loomed over Naruto. His back was turned to her so he had no idea what was happening. Sakura stood silently behind him, waiting for him to say something, but all the idiot could do was laugh at something he and Ino had been talking about. Sakura had long since realized that Ino had fallen deathly quiet after having seen her storm towards their table. Sakura also recognized the slight fear in Ino's eyes at seeing the pinkette and Sakura grinned mischievously.

"H-Hi there Forehead," Ino stumbled over her words at seeing the raging fire in Sakura's eyes and her anger emanating off the kunoichi in dark brooding waves.

"Sakura-chan is here?" Naruto asked as he looked confusingly at Ino.

Sakura pulled out her black leather gloves and put them on. She flexed her hands and fingers as she fisted them and the sound of creaking leather echoed through the restaurant that had fallen very silent as every set of eyes were directed toward the table.

"Where?" Naruto asked next and began to turn around to look at the door. He started sweating as his eyes fell upon a pissed off Sakura standing behind him. Stuttering, Naruto hesitantly slipped out of the booth and stood before Sakura. "H-hi, w-w-what are you doing here Sakura? D-did I do something wrong? W-where we suppose to meet for training?"

Sakura's eyes traveled from Naruto to Ino's and saw her blonde friend flinch, "Ino-pig…" Sakura growled and raised her upper lip giving her a feral expression. Combined with Sakura's visible anger and rage, Ino shrunk further under the table.

At this point Ino's head was the only remaining visible part of her body that could be seen. "I-I am sorry Sakura. I didn't know, I thought," Ino stuttered some more.

"Thought what Pig?" Sakura growled while ignoring Naruto's attempts of talking to her.

"N-n-nothing," Ino quickly added as she understood the silent threat and meaning of Sakura's steely glance as Sakura staked out her claim and ensuring the blonde would understand the consequences of intruding upon it.

Sakura's eyes wondered away from one problem and stopped on the next. "Naruto," she growled in anger and her right hand snapped forward grabbing his ear.

"Sakura-chan, what's wrong?" Naruto asked before her hand got hold of his ear and he winced in pain as she felt her fingers squeeze. "Sakura-chan, that hurts."

"Naruto," she growled again only to tighten her grip on his ear and forcing him down to his knees.

"Sakura-chan, I am sorry," Naruto apologized as tears formed in his eyes as the pain on his ear intensified. "Whatever I did, I am sorry."

"You're coming with me now," Sakura growled and turned to walk outside the restaurant dragging Naruto behind her.

Naruto complained the entire way to the training ground at Sakura's vice like grip on his ear and only got free of her hold as they reached their sparring area. Sakura turned around and watched him rub is ear. She walked up to him and pulled his head down to her level and her fiery eyes locked with his sapphire blues that held utter confusion. "Now you listen very carefully Naruto," Sakura said coldly and made sure she spoke slow enough to ensure Naruto understood every single word. "From now on, you will ask me every single day if I want to go out on a date with you. You will train with me every single day; we will go and have lunch and dinner as a team with Sai and Kakashi. You will not talk to any kunoichi unless I am around and I forbid you to talk to Ino and Hinata. And perhaps when you behave like a good little boy, I might… I might decide that going on a date with you won't kill me. Do I make myself clear?"

Naruto had no idea what the hell had overcome Sakura but at this point he didn't care. He simply nodded quickly and didn't dare ask how he had gotten onto her bad side. "Good," Sakura said and let go of his collar. She flexed her right fist and slammed it into Naruto's face and watched him fly away, "Training is over."

Sakura stomped away and ignored her confused teammate. Unbeknownst to her, Sakura was currently watched by a curious Kakashi, who had ironically decided to go read the latest Icha Icha book in their team's training ground. "Strange," Kakashi muttered as he closed his book and vanished in a swirl of leaves.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

A week later Sakura was standing in Tsunade's office screaming at her teacher, "Why the hell can I not come with you? Sai and Naruto are going but why can't I?"

"I already told you that Naruto is going because he needs a distraction from the fact that Jiraiya has died and Sai is coming along because he is ANBU. I need you here in Konoha and make sure that the hospital is run properly and didn't you receive a new transfer into your staff? It was a new nurse if I can recall correctly," Tsunade replied while keeping calm. "You should show her the ropes and let her know how you do things. I don't need you Sakura, Naruto and Sai are plenty enough to guard me and the Genin as we travel to Suna."

Sakura was hurt at her teacher's words but her anger was at an intensity that she ignored it. "Shizune can take care of the hospital while I am traveling with you. Let me go, I want to come with you." Sakura yelled and paced back and forth. She suddenly stopped remembering the incident at her apartment and the strange warning. "I can't help it but I have a bad feeling about this. I don't know why but I need to come with you. What if Akatsuki attacks as they try to get Naruto… you need me."

"Nonsense," Tsunade muttered and shuffled through paperwork.

Sakura stopped in front of the desk and slammed her hands onto the wood, "Then what the hell was that note for?"

"What note?" Tsunade frowned and looked at her raging student.

"The one you slipped under my door at home, the one that said to trust no one, not even my closest friends?" Sakura looked pissed.

"I didn't leave you any note," Tsunade answered, her own anger slowly getting the better of her. "Do you still have it? Let me see it."

"Of course I don't," Sakura huffed and resumed her pacing. "It destroyed itself the moment I was done reading it. But I know it came from you. I am sure of it. It was your hand writing."

A loud crack was heard and Sakura flinched. She stopped and looked over at her teacher, "Sakura for the last time I did not leave you a note saying to not trust anyone. Someone's hand writing can be easily copied. I don't care what you think or feel or if you are PMS'ing but you are NOT coming along. You will stay here in Konoha and do as you are told. If I find out that you secretly followed us, I will have your shinobi license revoked so fast that you can't even say that you're sorry. Am I clear?"

Sakura grinded her teeth and replied. "Crystal clear Hokage-sama."

"Good," Tsunade started and was interrupted by a knock at the door. "Enter," she bellowed still angry at Sakura. She and Sakura watched a petite woman walk into the office.

The woman bowed to both, "Hokage-sama, Haruno-sama, I am the new nurse that was transferred from the ANBU medical wing to study under Sakura-sempai. I look forward to working with both of you."

Sakura snorted in annoyance and ignored the woman, "Whatever. This isn't over Tsunade-sensei. You have to take me with you…"

"It's over Sakura and you will do as you are told. Don't force me to ask Kakashi to keep an eye on you," Tsunade threatened again.

"Do it, what do I care." Sakura turned to the other woman, "Let's go to the hospital. I will show you what you need to do and how to not get in my way."

"As you wish Sakura-sempai," the woman bowed again. "Hokage-sama, thank you for giving me this opportunity, I will make sure I will learn all I can and use it when I return to the ANBU medical wing, once my apprenticeship is done."

"My pleasure," Tsunade replied and winced at hearing Sakura yell for the 'blasted and annoying' woman to follow. "And please don't mind my apprentice. She will be back to normal tomorrow. She is a really sweet and nice person and an excellent medical ninja. I am sure you will learn a lot from her. Now I suggest you quickly catch up with her, she does have an evil and sadistic streak in her personality that tends to influence her sometimes, especially when she is mad. I wouldn't want you to fall over from exhaustion because my apprentice let out her anger on you." Tsunade laughed at seeing the woman in front of her slightly pale.

Tsunade waited until she was alone and turned to the window, "What do you think Kakashi?"

"I am sorry Hokage-sama," Kakashi started. "I don't quite understand what you want from me."

Tsunade rolled with her eyes, "Kakashi please. I know that you have been spending time with your students this passed week, lunch and dinner with Sakura and Naruto? What brought that about?"

Kakashi shrugged with his shoulders as he sat in the window. "I honestly have no idea. The other day I was in our training ground reading one of my beloved books when those two appeared. Sakura was furious and scolded Naruto. I have no idea what it was about though."

Tsunade smiled and chuckled, "Oh I think I know. Apparently, Sakura can be quite jealous."

"Jealous? What are you talking about, jealous about whom?"

"Who? Well Naruto of course," Tsunade answered and watched Kakashi's disinterest turn to a surprised frown.

"Those two? No way in hell, I am sorry Hokage-sama but Sakura liking Naruto? That simply is not possible, she still loves Sasuke," Kakashi expressed. "At least I think she still does."

Tsunade shook her head, "I am sure Kakashi. Sakura has been slowly and steadily falling for our knucklehead and she finally realized that she has some competition. She is refusing to let Naruto out of her sight, in fact just the other day she forced him to stay in the hospital all day while she had to take care of her shift. This entire argument just now I think was another attempt of her to exert her control over him. And this nonsense about a self-destroying note… please as if I would fall for that."

Kakashi was thinking out loud, "I guess that might explain that odd behavior at the training grounds. And come to think of it, Sakura hasn't mentioned Sasuke at all in a long time either."

"Trust me Kakashi," Tsunade smiled happily. "It is only a matter of time until that girl opens up to him."

"If you say so Hokage-sama," Kakashi nodded and gave her a small wave. "I will be off to get more reading done."

"Reading… right," Tsunade muttered as she watched Kakashi vanish from her window. "You're way too curious for your own good Kakashi. Stalking your own students… Kakashi that is pathetic."

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Tsunade's hell began last evening when she was unexpectedly visited by Danzo. The old war-hawk was stalking the fields again and she had played into his hands. He had come to her and she was about to throw him out of her office when she suddenly couldn't speak anymore. Her mouth wouldn't budge even though she tried desperately to speak. She had panicked and was suddenly greeted with a sneering Danzo. As if he had known what she was thinking, he had told her everything, told her how she had unwillingly consumed a poison that would make her obedient to his every command.

She had received his orders last night and she was furious but whenever she tried to speak about them or tell anyone what happened to her, her mouth would shut and wouldn't let her secret escape. Her only chance of thwarting Danzo's plan of assassinating Naruto with the help of Orochimaru and grasp power in Konoha was her own body or perhaps a disobedient apprentice. And for once Tsunade hoped Sakura would actually not listen to her orders and follow them. Her only hope lay with Tsunade's own body fighting this toxin that had slowly been build up in her system and rid her of this curse that kept her tongue under control.

Here she sat now in the dark carriage, trying not to talk or look at her favorite blond knucklehead but she was out of luck. Naruto was asking her questions non-stop and listening to him whine about how much he missed Sakura. Sakura, the one who somehow knew that something bad was going to happen even prior to Danzo's visit, had fought to come along again in the morning but Tsunade had steadily refused her again per Danzo's orders. At this point, Tsunade hated herself for ever having fallen prey to Danzo.

"Man, I miss Sakura-chan," Naruto whined again as he sat on top of the carriage that carried the Hokage. "We have been spending so much time together this past week it was almost as if we were dating. It was so much fun."

"Gaki shut the hell up," Tsunade stuck her head out of the window. "I am trying to sleep down here." In fact, Tsunade tried to drown out her misery and wished Shizune hadn't removed the sake from the carriage.

"I am sorry Baa-chan but I can't help it. I miss her so much," Naruto flopped onto his back and stared at the clouds. "I wonder what she is doing right now. This last week was amazing. I never spend this much time with her… it was almost as if we were dating."

"Probably making the hospital staff feel her wrath and anger at being refused to accompany us," Tsunade muttered and pulled her head out of the window and leaned back into the darkened carriage.

"Hey Baa-chan," Naruto asked as he stuck his head into the carriage. "How come none of the Jonin senseis are coming along? I am sure our Genin squads could use their senseis' moral support when they enter the Chunin exams in Suna."

"It's because after the Suna-Sound attack on Konoha, all Kage's agreed that Jonin teachers are no longer allowed to accompany their charges. It's to protect the host from similar backstabbing that we experienced, as well as this being another test for the Genin." This was nothing more than a lie that Danzo told her to tell in case the idiot demon child would ask.

"And what kind of test is that?" Naruto asked thinking it could only be a lame excuse.

"To see if the Genin teams can survive in the field without their senseis' advice. Not every village has a Forbidden Forest like we do Naruto and can test that theory properly when they host the Chunin exams." Tsunade looked at the blond hanging up side down from the roof of the carriage and shook her head as his head disappeared again. She sighed in pain at seeing him and had been in constant pain since the evening before, when she had received the visit from Danzo.

She looked outside the window and saw where she was and she knew it was only a matter of time until Orochimaru would attack and kill Naruto. And all she could do was silently watch him get slaughtered. She wiped away a lone tear that had escaped her and Tsunade cursed herself once again for drinking the sake from the mysterious red bottles that were laced by Danzo's poison.

A loud explosion suddenly rocked the carriage and flipped her over. Tsunade could hear the screams and cries of the Genin squads that had obediently followed the carriage and she knew that her Genin were hit the worst from this explosion. _"That fucking bastard is sacrificing our new generation,"_ Tsunade cursed as she picked herself up. _"If I ever break this curse, I swear, I will kill you Danzo. I should have done that a long time ago."_

"Baa-chan… Baa-chan," Naruto screamed frantically and tore off one of the doors of the carriage. "Are you alright?"

"Yes," Tsunade whispered in remorse knowing what would come next. She couldn't look him in the eyes, she just couldn't because it was hurting too much to know that she had betrayed him, but she did anyways. Her eyes widened at seeing blood run down his face from a superficial wound on his forehead. A shaking hand reached out for him, wanting to heal him but as she was about to touch him, he vanished in front of her very own eyes.

It happened so fast, but she knew what had happened. Orochimaru had arrived and had instantly attacked Naruto. Tsunade saw how hundreds of snakes wrapped around Naruto and pulled him away from the carriage. She quickly scrambled out through the door and her eyes fell upon utter carnage. Dead Genin were lying everywhere, appendages were torn off by the violent explosion and the few that were still alive, were screaming for their mothers. Those still alive were currently dispatched by Oto-nins. She wanted to help them and took a step forward, only to freeze up as she heard Danzo's voice reverberate deep in her mind telling her to obey Orochimaru and watch how her precious Naruto would be killed right in front of her eyes. Tsunade fell to her knees and watched because that was all she could do.

Naruto blinked in surprise as he felt something wrap around his waist. He felt a strong tug and he found himself flying through the air, away from Tsunade and the carriage. "What the hell is going on," he screamed in frustration and confusion. He landed with a loud thud several tens of meters away from the carriage and jumped to his feet.

Once on his feet, he heard an all too familiar high pitched tone and he quickly jumped into the air dodging what would have been a painful Chidori to his back. Naruto's eyes went wide yet again as he saw Sasuke walking out of the cloud of dust where the Chidori had impacted the ground, "S-Sasuke?"

"Hn," Sasuke grunted and charged another Chidori.

"What the hell are you doing here Sasuke?" Naruto shouted in disbelief at seeing his friend and brother again.

"What do you think dope?" Sasuke laughed. "I am here to finish what I should have done all those years ago and this time Orochimaru won't stop me either… Naruto, I am going to kill you."

Naruto looked at Sasuke and grew more and more confused as he saw Sasuke stand there, with a charged Chidori in his hands but not attacking. Naruto desperately looked around; expecting an attack from behind him and for the first time realized what was going on around him. The four Genin squads that had come along for their Chunin exams lay dead scattered around the landscape. Oto-nins walked from corpse to corpse beheading each Genin to ensure the children were really dead.

Naruto grew angry at the desecration and cowardice these Oto-nins portrayed and he readied himself to attack. He heard the demon fox within him eagerly offer his chakra to punish these murderers and Naruto responded willingly. He surrendered his body over to the fox and felt the demonic chakra course through him. The power made him transform, the cloak formed, and Naruto knew he had three chakra tails forming because the pain that plagued his body was almost unbearable.

Naruto heard Sasuke laugh and he narrowed his eyes at the Uchiha. "I will make you pay for this Sasuke," Naruto growled and charged a red Rasengan.

"Hn," Sasuke grunted again at seeing Naruto slowly but surely loosing control over the demon. "Dope, if you continue, I won't even have to kill you myself. You'll be doing that all by yourself quite well. Isn't that right Orochimaru?"

"Sasuke, my dear boy, you are correct."

Naruto's eyes snapped over towards the Snake Sannin and more power rushed through him as his anger grew exponentially. He saw Orochimaru standing next to a kneeling Tsunade, who wasn't moving or doing anything. She just knelt there, staring at him through teary and lifeless eyes, but he knew she was still alive. In fact she wasn't even hurt. Naruto's anger turned to confusion and the demonic chakra receded from him. His transformation canceled and Naruto was back to his old self, "Baa-chan what's wrong?"

"N-Naruto I am sorry," Tsunade screamed as she sobbed uncontrollably but was still unable to move.

"Not another word from you Hokage-sama," Sai appeared next to her. He held his sword to her throat, "Danzo-sama would like you to survive this but I do have permission to kill you if the need arises."

"Sai!" Naruto screamed at seeing his latest teammate raise his sword against Tsunade. "What are you doing? Attack Orochimaru, protect Tsunade."

Naruto suddenly felt a slight push that barely fazed him. He ignored it but when he saw Tsunade's expression turn to horror, he frowned. "Dope you are pathetic," Sasuke whispered into his ear.

Naruto's eyes grew wide in recognition and looked down at himself and saw Sasuke's arm stuck in his chest. He watched in horror as Sasuke slowly pulled out his blood covered arm. The sound of tearing flesh and tissue flowed into Naruto's ears and he knew it was quickly followed by a torrent of blood escaping from his gaping wound.

Another slight push from Sasuke and Naruto fell backwards to the ground. His life energy escaping rapidly and his eye lids were growing heavy. Naruto felt the Kyuubi using all his power to stem the flow of blood and heal him at the same time but Naruto knew it wouldn't be enough. Naruto knew that Sasuke wouldn't give him the time to pull on the Kyuubi's power completely and let him transform again just so he could rapidly heal his wound. "Why?" Naruto asked weakly as he watched Sasuke step over him, sword raised high.

Sasuke snorted and those cold lifeless black eyes stared into Naruto's blue, "Because you are in the way of Danzo's and Orochimaru's plans."

Naruto chuckled, which rewarded him by having to spit out his blood, "I always knew that Konoha would betray me. But I would have never thought that you Sasuke, you who I think of as a brother would kill me."

The corners of Sasuke's lips perked up, "Brother? I guess we could call ourselves brothers. We hated each other all along and yet were so alike, brothers' does sound better than simple teammates. In that spirit brother, farewell."

"Farewell Sasuke," Naruto whispered and closed his eyes, expecting the cold touch of Sasuke's blade to penetrate him and cut his heart. Naruto would be lying if he had said he didn't have any regrets, he had plenty but somehow at this very moment he could not think of anything. He was in total peace and even the raging Kyuubi within him couldn't disturb this momentary feeling of bliss he was experiencing.

Naruto wondered why the cold kiss of death wasn't coming, when he suddenly heard someone growl above him with venom. He opened his eyes and saw a single black gloved hand having stopped Sasuke's sword millimeters away from his chest and heart. Red blood slowly ran down the immaculate silver blade of Sasuke's sword as it escaped from the gloved hand and Naruto wanted to turn his head to see who it was but somehow he couldn't.

"Brothers' don't kill each other _Sasuke-kun_," Sakura growled and said Sasuke's name with an intensity of disgust that surprised both Naruto and Sasuke.

"Hn, what do you know weakling?" Sasuke muttered as he took his eyes off Naruto. "All you did was hold us back."

"Perhaps I did Sasuke but at least I didn't betray my friends and village just to seek power." Sakura retorted. "I found strength in Konoha and I guess I have to thank you for that because hadn't you left Konoha, I would have never had the strength to ask Tsunade-shishou to teach me."

"You're still pathetic," Sasuke snorted and tried to pull back his sword only to realize he couldn't.

"That's right Sasuke," Sakura smirked. "You haven't fought me yet. Let me show you how much stronger I have become." Sakura suddenly cocked back her right fist and slammed it into Sasuke's face and the sound of bone breaking echoed over the battlefield. At the same time she let go of the sword with her left hand and watched the Uchiha fly away from the power of her punch.

Naruto saw Sakura step into his line of sight and he was confused at seeing her spill tears. Her left palm was bleeding from catching Sasuke's blade in the nick of time and her blood fell to the ground. He fought his drowsiness from the lack of blood and tried to stand up because he felt the need to comfort her. But he couldn't and fell back into the dirt. He wheezed heavily as what was left of his right lung collapsed under the strain of him getting up and he muttered a quiet, "Sakura-chan I am sorry" thinking she was crying because of finally realizing how corrupted Sasuke had become. "I just couldn't tell you… I am sorry."

He watched Sakura kneel next to him and pull his head into her lap, "Baka don't speak. Concentrate on conserving your energy and tell that dumb Kyuubi to start healing you."

"Sakura-chan, you have to flee. You can't take on Sasuke and Orochimaru by yourself." Naruto wheezed as he pleaded with the pinkette, ignoring the fact that she was stroking his head.

"I know," she said through a teary vision. "But I can't leave you Naruto, please don't leave me."

"Sakura!" Tsunade suddenly screamed. "Take him and run, run for your lives and never come back to Konoha. That is an order…" Tsunade was cut off as she was hit over the head by Sai and the Hokage passed out.

Sakura looked confused from where the unconscious Hokage lay to Naruto, "What is going on?"

"Sakura-chan, leave… NOW!" Naruto urged her and tried to pry himself out of her arms. "I will buy you time to get away from them."

"Naruto, I won't leave you. If I go I will take you with me." Sakura cried and tightened her hold on him. She looked at her sensei again and saw Sai and Orochimaru standing next to Tsunade. Sakura felt Sasuke approach quickly as she could hear his charged up Chidori screaming for blood and nearing dangerously close.

Sakura frowned and slammed her fist into the ground where she sat and threw herself on top of Naruto to cover up his open wound that had already started healing with the help of the Kyuubi. A shower of dirt and dust rained down upon them and she felt the ground below her give out as she and Naruto fell into the crater she had created to buy more time from Sasuke.

She quickly stood up and carried Naruto in her arms, who was now drifting in and out of consciousness. She looked up at Sai. "I don't quite understand what is going on right now Sai, but I promise you that I will find out and when I do, you better hope there will be an entire army between you and me because I will kill you for this betrayal." Sakura flashed through quick hand seals and muttered, "Genjutsu: Hanachiri Nuko." Sakura and Naruto dissolved into flower pedals and were gone.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Sakura materialized with Naruto in her arms quite the distance away from where they had been. Without sparing a glance back into the direction from where she had come from, she hastily jumped from tree branch to tree branch and added more distance between her and Orochimaru. She looked down at the unconscious Naruto in her arms and frowned at finding the open wound in his chest having stopped healing. She could no longer feel the Kyuubi's chakra coursing through Naruto and she feared for the worst. She quickly dropped down from the tree branch she had landed on and sprawled out Naruto in front of her. A shaking hand reached for his pulse and she let out a sigh of relief at finding a weak and faint pulse. She summoned chakra into her hands and placed them over Naruto's chest wound.

Pumping her chakra into the wound and enticing cell regeneration, she waited patiently for Naruto's bleeding to stop. Luckily for her, the Kyuubi had already healed the major arteries and organs that were destroyed by Sasuke, so her job was a lot easier and she wouldn't be exhausted afterwards. She continued healing him until only soft pink flesh remained from where Naruto had sported a gaping wound. She checked his pulse again and found it returning to normal. She pushed a blood pill into Naruto's mouth and took a soldier pill herself and without giving it a second thought, she picked him up and jumped back up the trees. She quickly continued running away with Naruto in her arms.

It was slowly getting dark and Sakura had only paused once to catch her bearings. She had finally figured out where she wanted to go and had turned abruptly north putting even more distance between her and possible pursuit. She heard the distant thunder of a waterfall and quickly headed towards it. She stopped at the top of the waterfall and looked down. Terrified of the immense height of the waterfall, she looked down from the edge of it and into a dark valley where the last of the remaining sunlight could no longer reach the ground. She sighed and shook her head. "Sakura, this is a stupid and insane idea."

Sakura swallowed and pulled Naruto closer to her chest and ran back along the raging river. Once she was several hundreds of meters up river, where the water was less turbulent, she summoned chakra to the bottom of her feet and quickly crossed the river. On the other side, she put down Naruto and flashed through another set of hand seals and drew blood and summoned one of her loyal slugs. "Greeting Lady Sakura," the slug muttered it's greeting in their soft and gentle sing-song voice they all shared but Sakura knew that these slugs could be quite dangerous.

"Hello Pinky," Sakura bowed in respect at the giant slug standing before her. Sakura was puzzled and a bit annoyed at having her personal summon be a slug with pink highlights but had come to love it as if it were a little sister.

"Lady Sakura I have told you that my name is Akina and not Pinky as you so pleasantly continue to call me." The slug objected while peeved.

Sakura chuckled, "I am sorry Akina but both of us are cursed with this pink color that distinguishes us so well from others. It is only fair for me to call you Pinky when I am called the same."

The slug bowed its head, "As you wish Lady Pinky. How may I assist you?"

Sakura's eye twitched in annoyance and anger as the slug turned it around. "Ok, I deserved that." Sakura picked up the still unconscious Naruto in her arms again. "I'd like you to head east towards Kirigakure. Travel as fast as you can but avoid being seen. Once you reach the ocean return to your realm. Do not trust anyone, not even Tsunade-sama or anyone else from Konoha."

"What is wrong with Tsunade-hime?" Akina asked worryingly. "Is there something I need to tell my mother?"

Sakura shook her head, "I don't know Akina. I won't know until I can talk to Naruto and get some answers, please trust me. Once we are safe, I will contact you again and inform you and your mother Katsuyu. Now please go and hurry."

The slug bowed, "As you command Lady Sakura. I will pull the pursuit off your trail."

"Thank you Akina and stay safe," Sakura bowed in return and watched the giant slug tore through the landscape leaving behind a path of destruction that could be easily followed. She was amazed at how different these slugs were compared to their tiny brethren in this world. The Slug summoning contract that Sakura had received from Tsunade upon graduating from her rigid training schedule was unique. Not only are these slugs fast, but they are also very deadly when it comes to fighting. There is nothing that could withstand their acidic spit and their amazing ability to split into thousands of tiny copies to avoid damage and spread mass confusion. Tsunade had told her that the slugs could also link with their summoner's chakra signature and draw upon the chakra to heal injured people. That theory however, was at this point still just a theory. Sakura hadn't believed her teacher and never saw her use that technique either.

Sakura looked at the sleeping blond in her arms and hugged him closer to her as she sighed. "Naruto, I hope this works," she whispered and jumped into the air. She performed a back flip and landed on the water of the river. She turned to look down the river and towards the cliff where the river turned into the waterfall as it rushed over the cliff and fell into the valley below. Muttering a short prayer, she held on to Naruto as if her life depended on it and stopped the flow of chakra to her feet. Sakura, along with Naruto fell into the water and was quickly dragged down. Sakura kicked with her legs as she tried to keep herself and Naruto's heads above the water and the booming noise of the waterfall drifted closer announcing the impending freefall. _"Oh kami, I think this was one giant bad mistake."_

Sakura suddenly felt weightless and she knew she was thrown over the gap of the cliff. Still clutching to Naruto, she instantly felt the tug of gravity upon her and they both fell into the blackness of the valley below. As they were falling, Sakura was praying she would survive this crazy idea, _"Kami let us survive this and I swear I am never going to hit Naruto again."_


	2. Of Dreams and Ambitions

**Fūrinkazan**

Chapter 2

"Of Dreams and Ambitions"

* * *

Chapter 2

Sakura hit the water hard and her hold on Naruto's unconscious body slipped as she tumbled through the water alone. Sakura panicked at the loss of Naruto's weight in her arms and her head turned in every direction desperately looking for a spot of blond or orange floating on top of the wild churning water. "Naruto," Sakura yelled desperately hoping her weak voice would overcome the thundering waterfall.

Blustering waves continuously splashed over her and Sakura was forced to swallow water. Coughing uncontrollably at the invading water, strong currents suddenly threatened to pull her under. If it weren't for the water washing her face, one could see she was actually crying as her desperation turned to hopelessness. "Naruto where are you?" She whimpered softly and was pushed further and further away from the waterfall by the current.

Kicking water and continuously spinning around her own axis looking for Naruto, her eyes found a lifeline in the form of a thick tree branch hanging over the part of the river she was currently floating in. Her hands shot up and she held on with her life as her fingers grasped the thick wood. The wall of water tried to push her along but her hold on the wood was firm and she desperately kicked with her lags as she pulled herself higher out of the river. Exhausted, she summoned chakra to the bottom of her feet and finally placed them on the water surface without sinking in.

Breathing heavily as she was spent, her weary eyes scanned the raging waterfall and river before her. The little light that was left in this dark valley was fading quickly and Sakura was losing the last shred of hope at finding Naruto before he would drown. Hoping that he might have gotten passed her somehow, Sakura turned around and ran along the riverbank scanning the water carefully.

Just as darkness consumed her, her eyes fell upon something orange floating up side down in the water. "Naruto," she screamed and dashed towards him. She saw his lifeless body bobbing in the water as his jacket had been snagged by a fallen tree that partially lay in the river. She reached him in record time and pried him out of the water. Being low on strength and energy, Sakura managed to drag him out of the river and placed him on his side hoping to dispel the water from his lung.

Sakura felt his pulse and breathed a sigh of relief as she saw him cough up water. He groaned and Sakura's heart lightened at seeing him alive. She wiped her tears out of her face and quickly checked her surrounding for a possible shelter. Not too far away in the distance she saw a peculiar mound and rock formation. She tilted her head as she was trying to remember where she had seen something like this before, when she remembered it was a picture in one of her history books from the Academy days. It was a tumulus or better known as an ancient burial mound.

Sakura sighed in relief at finding a place to seek shelter in, even if it could be considered burial desecration, but they needed a safe place to get some rest. She quickly checked on Naruto again and found him unconscious again. She grimaced and with her last strength carried him towards the burial mound. She moved aside the giant slap of solid rock that was the door and squeezed herself and Naruto inside. She quickly closed the tomb again and cradled Naruto into her arms as they rested against one of the walls.

Sakura was getting cold as night came and the temperature fell. Luckily, the temperature in the enclosed tomb was slightly warmer, but her wet clothes weren't helping in keeping her warm. She looked over at Naruto and saw the blond shivering in his sleep. His lips were already partially blue and his face was losing color.

"_Remember everyone; there might be a time when you and your team will be cut off from reinforcements. You might be behind enemy lines and in hiding, you might be injured, you might be wet, and you might be cold. If that ever happens never light a fire because it will draw attention to you and your team right away. If you freeze__, and you know that you can't find warmth, there is only one chance left to you if you do not wish to die. You have to undress and warm each other…"_ Iruka-sensei's wise words echoed through her mind and Sakura blushed at the thought of pressing her naked body against Naruto's.

"**Hell yeah! You should totally do it,"** Inner Sakura screamed as she came crashing back into Sakura's mind. **"We totally love him anyways and we get to see his…"**

"_Shut the hell up you damn pest. I__-I do not love him. I thought I banished you, go back into your cage and leave me alone. You always get me in a lot of trouble,"_ Sakura screamed at her inner self and concentrated on banishing her subconscious.

"**Spoil sport,"** Inner Sakura pouted and kicked a non existing pebble as it felt the push from Sakura to go back into the dark crevasses of her mind. **"I can't stand it, you're going to do it anyways but instead of reveling in it you try to justify it with your stupid logic, saying it was done because that was your only choice. Sasuke is never going to love you."**

Sakura grinded her teeth in anger again, _"I told you to go away."_

"**I am going, I am going,"** Inner Sakura complained and slowly receded. **"Just accept the fact that you actually love this blond idiot and stop living in your fantasy world. Grow up for crying out loud."**

"_AWAY I TOLD YOU!"_ Sakura screamed in her mind at her inner self that knew her so well. _"I know how I feel but,"_ Sakura looked to Naruto. _"But I am not ready yet."_ Sakura heard her inner self snort in disgust but that was all until Sakura was left alone to her lone thoughts again.

Sakura sneezed as another shiver ran through her and she decided to follow Iruka-sensei's embarrassing suggestion. "Thank kami that Naruto is unconscious," Sakura muttered as she pulled her wet shirt over her head. She quickly rid herself of the rest of her clothing and spread them out as best as she could in the darkness. Thankfully her eyes had adjusted and she could see fairly well in the dark tomb and found several weapons inside the tomb out of which she had quickly build a sort of scaffold to hang her wet clothes on. She was kneeling next to Naruto and had already removed the wet binding that was holding her breasts in place. Sakura had decided to keep her panties on though; she wasn't comfortable with the thought of her being completely naked.

She quickly went to work on Naruto's wet clothing and pried him out of his wet jumpsuit. The orange and black jumpsuit was quiet heavy from having soaked up so much water and was almost like a sponge. After the jacket and pants, she removed his black muscle shirt and placed his wet clothes next to hers on the scaffold. She left him with his boxers on, thinking it was only fair for him to keep his on because she was wearing her bottoms as well. Sakura looked around and luckily found a dried patch of moss in one of the corners of the tomb and dragged Naruto over. She lay down next to him and wrapped him into her arms. At first she was hugging him from behind, so that his back was directed towards her but she was still cold and decided to roll over him so she could snuggle into his chest. She wrapped her arms around him after she threw his around her and slowly drifted off to sleep in his chest.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

_Sakura __found herself sitting in a giant flower field and as far as her eyes could reach, the colors of the rainbow from the many different flowers greeted her. She flopped to the ground and laughed as various peddles flew into the air around her. The slight breeze that drifted over the field picked these up and carried them away. Sakura watched the flower peddles dance gracefully in the wind and she let the warmth of the sun fill her. She sharply inhaled the many different smells and she thought she was in heaven._

_As the dancing peddles left her sight, she looked up into the sky and saw a lonesome hawk circling high above her. She watched the majestic bird glide on the currents of the air as the hawk was looking for food. She smiled as she watched the bird drop from the sky and dive towards the ground. As the hawk neared the ground, it vanished in a puff of flower peddles only to reappear carrying its prey moments later. Sakura watched the bird fly across the field, only to vanish in the never ending horizon._

_Her smile faltered when she suddenly heard short hectic and high pitched barking. She quickly looked around but was unable to see the perpetrator of the commotion that had destroyed the calm and serene atmosphere. She stood up to get a better view and her eyes fell upon a lonesome Sakura tree. The tree itself was beautiful but as Sakura studied the tree, it began to wither right in front of her eyes. She walked closer, curious of the tree and froze in her steps as she saw a small orange fox, with its back in a hump and furiously growling at a small black snake._

_Sakura stood there as the fox carefully circled around the snake. At the same time, the cold calculating eyes of the snake never left the fox. The fox quickly dashed in and attacked the snake. The two animals traded blows but neither succeeded in landing a hit. Sakura watched the two fierce animals battle for what seemed like a lifetime. She watched them grow in size and power and as the two enemies closed for yet another attack, the fox scored a hit by biting into the snake's body. The snake hissed and fell limp and the fox let go of its kill. Sakura watched as the fox looked sadly upon his enemy and slowly turned away from the snake and walked towards the withering Sakura tree._

_Sakura saw the withering of the tree halt as the fox lay down next to one of its roots. But suddenly the black snake shot up, as if it had come back alive and viciously attacked the exhausted fox. The snake's poisonous fangs latched onto the fox's neck and unleashed its deadly poison. After much struggle, the fox tore the snake off its neck and slashed at the head of its enemy leaving several long gashes in the reptilian scales. The fox collapsed next to its adversary and Sakura watched not only the tree withering but also the two combatants._

_Her eyes started tearing and she quickly ran towards the two animals. She dropped to her knees next to them and both briefly turned their dying heads towards the pinkette. The fox tried to get up and crawl closer but failed as the snake's poison paralyzed the fox. Sakura was reaching out for the orange fox but suddenly stopped when she heard the black snake hiss at her in anger. She looked into the cold lifeless orbs of the snake and Sakura saw a kind of recognition. Her hands carefully reached out for the snake and was about to touch it when the snake struck and delivered a dose of its paralyzing poison into Sakura. She cried out in pain and her vision turned blurry as she watched the snake slowly slither away and hiss repeatedly that she could only discern as laughter. Sakura heard the fox whimper and watched as it struggled to reach her but repeatedly failed._

_  
More tears welled up in her eyes and Sakura pulled herself as best as she could towards the orange fox and was able to reach him before the snake's venom could take affect. She cradled the fox in her arms and hugged it gently. She heard the Sakura tree she was under creak and moan and her head turned and she watched the tree wither and die, sharing hers and the fox's fate._

"Naruto," Sakura screamed and bolted upright as she jerked awake from the dream. She was breathing heavily and it took her a while to realize where she was. She looked down to her side and saw Naruto quietly sleep next to her. With a shaking hand, she checked for his pulse and found it beating faster than it should. Concerned, she placed the palm of her hand onto his forehead and found him burning up.

"What is going on? Naruto never gets a fever."

As she quickly checked his body with her sensory chakra, Naruto started convulsing. Sakura panicked and tried to hold him down but his trashing knocked her away. Her eyes darted back and forth, as she desperately tried to come up with a diagnosis so she could treat him for whatever was affecting him. She watched him foam around the mouth and Sakura's hand went up to her face. She hid her mouth behind her hands in shock and tears started flowing. "Naruto what is wrong with you," Sakura sobbed as she helplessly watched him thrash around. "Why won't you wake up?"

Unable to keep looking, she threw herself on top of him and whispered into his ears, hoping that it would calm him down. She bobbed on top of him for a few seconds and held on to him with all her strength and rode out the convulsions. Naruto finally calmed and she looked into his pain stricken face. Worried, she softly brushed his blond bangs out of his face. She wiped away the tears from her face and got up to look for a piece of cloth to wipe his mouth with.

Sakura checked his and her clothing but found them very cold and still partially wet. She sighed and got hold of her bindings. She tore them apart with one of her kunai and returned to Naruto. With a piece of her binding she wiped the foam that had formed around his mouth away. After she was satisfied that Naruto wouldn't have another attack, she tried to look for a cause of Naruto's pain. Minutes later, Sakura still came up empty handed and she lay back down next to him and inched closer to share her body heat with his. It was still cold in the tomb and slowly Sakura drifted back to sleep.

_The smell of spring flowers __assaulted her senses and she opened her eyes to the sight of the flower field she had dreamed off only moments ago. She quickly stood up from her sitting position and looked around until her eyes fell upon the lone Sakura tree. She quickly ran over and saw the same orange fox and black snake circle each other as if nothing had previously happened before. She watched as the two animals traded blows with neither getting injured. She watched them grow in size and power yet again as their fight continued and she knew she had reached the point in the dream where the two animals would attack each other._

_Just as before, the fox scored a devastating hit and after what seemed like mourning, the fox trotted over to the Sakura tree. The tree itself had once again stopped withering momentarily but resumed his death throes as the black snake shot up and pumped venom into the fox's neck. Sakura ran over to the two animals and kneeled next to them. She saw the fox try to reach her anew, only to fail and her hands went out towards the fox only to be stopped by the hissing of the snake._

_Sakura looked into the cold eyes of the snake and felt the feeling of familiarity once more. But remembering what had happened before, Sakura stood up from where she was kneeling and in a wide arc, walked around the snake. She kneeled back down behind the fox and quickly took hold of the orange animal. Petting its fur, Sakura looked into a pair of sapphire blue eyes and she smiled as the warm feeling of kinship flooded her. She summoned chakra to her hands and started healing the fox. She pulled out the venom and watched the energetic spunk of the fox return to the animal._

_Sakura giggled as the fox licked her fingers in thanks and rubbing its body and fur against her in a show of affection. Angry hissing of the snake drew both Sakura's and the fox's attention and they watched the black snake raise its head. Jaws apart in a show of threat, the snake slowly snaked away and vanished in the fields of flowers. Sakura was saddened at seeing the snake leave, she felt regret at not having been able to heal its injuries, she felt regret at seeing the proud animal walk a lonely road but to her surprise, her heart did not feel burdened or sorrow._

_The gentle and affectionate licks of the fox pulled her back from her self contemplation and she gently petted the fox's head as its blue eyes looked up to her in worry, which also shared a mutual pain at seeing the snake leave. She offered a soft gentle smile to reassure the animal that she was fine. She stood up from where she was kneeling and said her good bye to the fox. She walked away from the Sakura tree only to realize that the fox was following her. She tried to shoo him away but the orange fox refused. It rubbed its body against her legs and purred seductively._

_Sakura shuddered at the purring and lowered herself. She crouched down and looked at the fox as it looked at her in question with its head slightly tilted to the side. Sakura felt a grin split her face at seeing the fox and yelped in surprise when the fox walked up and placed its front paws onto her knees. The fox licked her nose once and she felt the urge to crush the animal in an affectionate embrace._

_She giggled as the fox's tongue tickled her and her hands went up to his ears and petted him. The fox purred in joy and rolled over. Sakura rubbed its belly and watched the fox drown in bliss. What she was feeling was difficult to describe, but the kinship to this specific fox was so strong that she could not leave it behind. She stopped spoiling the fox with her belly rubs and watched the animal study her. She smiled and asked him, "You will never leave me will you?"_

_The fox jumped to its legs and quickly licked her face as if he understood her question. She laughed and petted him one last time before standing back up, "Let's go then."_

_She looked up towards the withering Sakura tree and was surprised at seeing it in full bloom and looking healthier and stronger than ever. The wind suddenly picked up and ruffled her hair and she could feel the gentle caress of the wind on her cheeks. She smiled and looked up into the sky and saw more flower peddles dance in the wind. "Thank you, I think I finally understand."_

Sakura yawned and opened her eyes slowly as she woke up again. She found herself still in Naruto's arms and she smiled as she cuddled closer. She listened to his rhythmic breathing and his steady heart beat and she hoped that Naruto would be ok. To make sure, she checked his forehead and found it devoid of ever having any signs of a fever. She sighed in relief and snuggled her face into Naruto's naked chest. "I love you Naruto," she whispered and felt his arms tighten around her in response.

Sakura lay like that for a long time. She was warm, she was comfortable, she wasn't alone, and for the first time since Sasuke had left, she was truly happy. As time passed though, she started to get worried because Naruto had still not woken up. It must have been well over twelve hours now that Naruto had fallen into unconsciousness and his random convulsion earlier. She carefully pried herself out of his arms and looked at his sleeping face that looked so peaceful. She smiled and traced the whisker marks on his face for the very first time. She found them to be nothing special. The whisker marks were nothing more than a set of three scars on each of his cheeks and here she had hoped them to be actual fox-like whiskers.

Shrugging away her disappointment, Sakura stood back up and walked over towards her clothes, hoping to find them dry now. To her luck they were and she quickly put them back on. She slipped into her spandex shorts and her hands went for her binding only to remember she had cut them apart. She sighed and decided she might as well start now in stopping to wear bindings. She had planned on not wearing them anyways because she was already 16 years old and Tsunade had strongly suggested to her to stop binding her chest. Tsunade had explained that Sakura was still growing and that if she were to continue to bind her chest, complications might arise later on. She clipped her medical skirt around her waist and finally slipped into her sleeveless red top. She zipped it up and felt instantly uncomfortable as she felt the fabric rub against her unprotected breasts. She stretched her muscles and winced at feeling them very sore.

After she was done stretching, she picked up Naruto's clothes and walked over to the unconscious blond. She debated of putting his clothes back on him but decided against it. She took his jacket and laid it on top of him as a makeshift blanket. His pants and black muscle shirt were folded and placed next to him.

She stood back up and bit her thumb to draw blood and flashed through several hand signs. In a small puff of smoke, Sakura summoned a small slug the size of a cat, "Greetings Mistress Sakura. My name is Sayuri, How may I be of service?"

"Hello Sayuri," Sakura greeted the small slug. "I need to go to the nearest village and buy some supplies. In the meantime please keep a watchful eye on my friend here. If anything happens, or anyone other than myself approaches, inform me immediately."

"As you wish Lady Sakura, I will make my mother proud by serving you."

Sakura smiled and nodded before she took hold of Naruto's Gama-chan and walked towards the giant slab of rock that barred the exit to the burial mound. She moved it aside only to put it back in place after she passed through. Sakura found that it was already mid day and she quickly surveyed her surroundings and cross referenced them with her map. "If I am right," Sakura looked up from the map and to the west. "There should be a small village in that direction."

Sakura folded her map and placed it back into her small hip bag. She took one last look at the burial mound and then jumped away towards the village.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX****XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Danzo stood on top of the Hokage tower and overlooked the village. Below him the villagers and the shinobi of Konohagakure stood crowded together. Like a wild fire, the news of what had occurred to their Genin teams that had accompanied the Hokage had spread throughout the village. News spread quickly and the people demanded answers. Danzo smiled as the electricity in the air became almost visible. Their anger and sorrow was palpable and Danzo relished in it. At the moment, even the small hindrance in his perfect plan, namely the fact that Sakura Haruno had escaped his tyrannical grasp and helped the Kyuubi brat escape, couldn't destroy this moment for him.

Danzo waited several more minutes until he stepped forward for everyone below him to see. He cleared his throat and stepped up to the microphone that would carry his voice out over the growing crowd.

"Dear people of Konoha," Danzo started his well planned out speech. "I regret to inform you of the passing of our late Hokage and legendary slug Sannin Tsunade-hime." Danzo paused giving his speech a dramatic affect. He had captivated the people standing below him and he smiled victoriously. "One week ago, our beloved Hokage traveled to one of our Ally nations of Sunagakure and was attacked. Our investigations have shown that her convoy was savagely attacked, the Genin teams that were traveling with the Hokage were slaughtered like lambs and their heads had been cut off and impaled on pikes. From what we could gather, the Hokage valiantly defended herself but against the foe she was pitted against, even her legendary strength and healing abilities were not enough to save herself."

Several gasps were heard from the crowd below and Danzo swiftly continued as he was holding their attention. "It saddens me to inform you that our beloved Hokage was not attacked by an enemy nation or simple bandits. No, our beloved Hokage was betrayed by one of our own. She was killed, just like the Genin were, and she was killed by none other than the demon child Naruto Uzumaki. The demon brat slaughtered everyone and didn't make hold on teammates and friends either. Some of you know that the Hokage and the demon boy were close, some more might know that Uzumaki had a love interest in the Hokage's personal apprentice Sakura Haruno, and other's might know that he had sworn to protect the village until he died. With great grief it pains me to inform you that he lied. Just like a demon, he betrayed us all. He betrayed our trust and our love we offered him and what did we get in return? A dead Hokage, slaughtered Genin, and utter and pure destruction."

Yells for justice and cries for revenge were heard coming from the crowd below Danzo as he briefly paused. _"And now to draw them in completely,"_ Danzo said to himself.

"Naruto Uzumaki, the container for the Kyuubi no Yoko, also killed the woman he had claimed to love. Sakura Haruno, who was ordered by the Hokage to stay behind in Konoha and attend the sick and wounded in the hospital as was her duty, had betrayed her Master's orders because of a bad foreboding. I was informed that Sakura Haruno had pleaded with the Hokage to be taken along to Sunagakure but the Hokage had steadily refused believing she was safe with the demon boy. All I know is that Sakura Haruno reached the Hokage and her caravan as the demon child went berserk and started attacking his friends and loved ones. I regret to inform you that young Haruno was brutally raped and beaten by the Kyuubi container and left for dead. Our search teams were able to get to her in time to hear of what had transpired but we were unable to safe the Hokage's apprentice. Sakura Haruno died in the arms of the ANBU and my deepest condolences go out to her family and the families of the slain Genin, their loss will never be forgotten."

Several families broke down in crying at hearing the information and Danzo gave the people a brief moment of sorrow before enticing it into a vengeful firestorm.

"In light of this disaster, I now present you, the people of Konoha, with a new Alliance between Konohagakure and Otogakure. We were approached by Orochimaru, the leader of Otogakure and he offered us his sympathies. I know what all of you are thinking but Orochimaru is not who he was portrayed to be by the Third and the demon boy. Orochimaru has told us that the demon boy had control over our beloved Third Hokage and that was the reason behind the Oto invasion from several years ago. Orochimaru regretted that decision but had hoped to return peace and order to his home of Konoha. He has promised his support in our actions against the Kyuubi container, he promised to help in our revenge, and together as a united front, we will defeat the demon once and for all. And to those enemies that dare stand against the might of Konoha will fall to our will of fire. Akatsuki, Iwagakure, Kumogakure, and all other enemies that threaten our peace and stability will feel our wrath. They will feel our burning vengeance upon their skins and under my orders, I will lead Konoha to victory. I will bring the strength and respect that we once held back to us, we will prove to the world that we are the strongest shinobi nation."

"_These fools are so easily controlled. If you control the masses, you control the village council,"_ Danzo mused and chuckled in his mind as he listened to the thunderous applause of the people below him. He raised his healthy hand in a gesture to ask for silence and the people obeyed quickly.

"Now, I would like to present to you a long lost child of the village. One who found out about the Kyuubi's mind control over the Third and was forced to leave Konoha. He approached the one man that could help him, he trained under this man and became his apprentice. I now present to you Sasuke Uchiha, apprentice to Orochimaru."

Danzo stepped aside so Sasuke could step up and show himself to the people of Konoha. He bore an impassionate face and was about to turn around and leave again when Danzo leaned in, "Say a few words, make them believe in you and they will follow you to the end of the world."

Sasuke's cold eyes slowly looked at Danzo and directed his killing intent at the aging war hark for being used in this political power struggle. "As you wish," he muttered and stepped up to the microphone. The crowd below Sasuke fell deathly quiet as the people waited for Sasuke to speak.

"Orochimaru is dead, I killed him. I am now the leader of Otogakure and I will kill Naruto Uzumaki, do not get in my way Konoha." Sasuke turned and walked away as he was followed by Suigetsu.

Danzo rushed up to Sasuke and spoke to him in quick hushed in voices, "What do you mean Orochimaru is dead? Did you really kill him? What about our deal?"

"I don't care what you had planned with Orochimaru. Just be sure that I will kill Naruto and that Orochimaru is dead. Now if you excuse me, I'll have somewhere to go. Do as you wish with Konoha and Otogakure. Suigetsu, let's go." Sasuke and Suigetsu vanished as they jumped away.

Danzo grinned and muttered as he returned to the microphone to calm the crowd, _"Perfect with Orochimaru out of the way nothing can stop me."_

Danzo looked at the crowd of people below him and saw them murmur to each other. He cleared his throat for all to hear over the speaker system and everyone fell silent. "I am sorry for this surprise, but I was not informed of Orochimaru's death. Sasuke Uchiha apparently saved Konoha from yet another betrayal by disposing of Orochimaru, who had planned to destroy us. The Uchiha has promised his participation and allegiance to our demon hunt. He pledged Otogakure's forces to ours. Now let us hold the funeral for our beloved Hokage, her beloved apprentice, and the fallen Genin. Let the world know that today like a phoenix, Konoha will rise from the ashes of death and despair that are the cause of the Kyuubi brat's betrayal and get their revenge on this world."

More applause was heard and Danzo stepped away and turned to leave. His ANBU Root guards a steady step behind him. He entered the building and walked down towards a pair of secret stairs. As he entered the secret catacombs that were beneath the Hokage tower, he stopped in front of a cell door. He pulled out a key and unlocked the door swinging it open. A few rays of light lit up the dark cell and his single good eye fell upon the tied form of a woman.

Danzo grinned and stepped into the cell. He gave the woman a kick into her ribs and the woman's eyes flashed open in anger. He looked at the raging blonde that was tied and gagged and he grinned. If the look he was receiving could kill, Danzo would have turned to ash instantly.

"Tell me, how did you like my little speech Tsunade?" He watched her struggle against her restrains and he could only laugh at the pathetic sight in front of him. He turned around to leave but before the door closed he turned around and looked her in the eyes, "Rot here until you die Hokage-sama. Now I will lead this village as I was destined and under my guidance we will become the center of the world."

Muffled complaints that could only mean one thing, a string of curses, was heard before the door finally closed. Danzo took the key and pocketed it safely. He walked away, leaving the dank and smelly dungeon behind him and walked to his office, where two of his drones were waiting for him.

Danzo walked into his office and sat down in his chair. His eye fell upon the two drones that were kneeling in front of his desk with their heads bowed in reverence. He loudly inhaled and his gaze settled upon the male drone, "Sai you may stand."

Danzo waited for Sai to stand and nodded his approval at the boy still showing his respect by avoiding eye contact. "What do you have to say about your failure Sai? You informed me that Orochimaru was present when we captured the Hokage and yet I hear from the Uchiha brat that he killed the Snake Sannin."

"I apologize my Lord, but it appears that Sasuke killed Orochimaru after our successful capture of the Hokage."

"Indeed that is a possibility. Tell me Sai, you watched the Uchiha fight the demon. Is the Uchiha strong enough to actually defeat a Sannin at the caliber of Orochimaru?" Danzo asked with interest and kept a careful eye on the boy.

"Yes, I do believe so. The Uchiha shows much strength and hardly any weaknesses. He was able to dispatch Naruto fairly quickly."

"Is that so?" Danzo raised a single brow. "Then how do you explain the demon escaping the trap that should have been his end?"

"I am sorry Danzo-sama but the arrival of Sakura Haruno was untimely and out of my sphere of control and influence. I never expected her to show up on the battlefield and had not prepared for such a breach in protocol in advance. Please excuse my tardiness, it will never happen again."

Danzo nodded and his lone eye fell upon the other drone that was still kneeling. "Yes, having Sakura Haruno show up was indeed a grave mistake. Not only did we lose a skillful kunoichi and medic-nin but we also lost the person who held the slug summoning contract. Her loss is a painful dent in my plan of conquering all shinobi nations. What do you have to say to yourself, my sacrificial drone?"

The female Root member looked up in fear, "My Lord I am sorry. I have failed you. I was forced to assist in an operation and Haruno-san ironically used that exact moment to leave the village and follow the Hokage. If you wish, I will end my life right now."

Danzo watched the female pull out a small dagger and held it in front of her. She looked at him, waiting for his order to continue but Danzo had something else in mind. "I will give you another chance my little drone but do not fail me again. Go and find that demon container and the pink haired traitor and kill them. Do not return until you have completed this task and have restored your honor. As evidence bring me their summoning contracts."

"As you wish my Lord," the female drone bowed and vanished.

"Yes Sai what is it?" Danzo saw the pale boy tense.

"I am sorry Danzo-sama but sending her after Naruto and Sakura… that's like sending a baby into a snake pit. She won't stand a chance against those two," Sai voiced his opinion.

Danzo smiled, "Precisely my loyal subject but she will put pressure on those two. And from fear of being discovered, they will run far and wide. They will hide in some dark corner of this world and will be as far away from Konoha as possible. As long as they disappear, I don't care what they do."

"I understand."

"Sai," Danzo rumbled as he rubbed his dead stump of an arm. "You mentioned the Uchiha having weaknesses… explain."

"Of course," Sai replied and bowed with his head. "The Uchiha is very powerful and I am sure has learned many forbidden jutsu from Orochimaru but his greatest weakness consists in the form of pride. Sasuke Uchiha is obsessed with killing Naruto and his brother and he will do anything to find them and kill them. If you use that weakness against him, you will be able to keep him under control but if I may be so frank, I suggest letting him do as he pleases."

"Why?"

"From my short time that I spent at Orochimaru's base, I could tell that Orochimaru had trouble controlling the Uchiha. If you do not wish to die at the Uchiha's blade, let him do as he pleases and from time to time feed him with information about his brother's or Naruto's whereabouts and he should be cooperative."

"What is your analysis of his bodyguard, that Suigetsu character?" Danzo asked.

"He seems cocky and carries himself with confidence. He seems to be a capable sword fighter and he appears to be quite powerful as well. Otherwise I doubt the Uchiha would let that underling live."

"Thank you Sai. You may leave me now. Go and keep Kakashi and the demon boy's friends under surveillance. They might try and do something foolish," Danzo ordered.

"At once," Sai bowed and vanished in a splash of ink.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Sakura was kneeling and had Naruto's unconscious head in her lap. Worryingly she stroked through his damp hair as she waited for him to wake up. Physically nothing was wrong with Naruto, but somehow he was still in a coma and was plagued with seizures that would randomly afflict him. She had just minutes ago lived through yet another one of his seizures and Sakura grew ever more worried. For a day now, the frequency in which his seizures happened increased and Naruto throwing up his own bile was one of the latest additions to his unexplained symptoms.

It had been three days since Sakura had dared to sneak into a small village on the border of Fire and Waterfall Country. Once there she had bought several dry rations for herself and Naruto, a small oil lamp so she could have some form of a light source in the dark tomb, several candles in case the oil ran out, and most importantly, Sakura had bought civilian clothing for herself and Naruto.

Sakura currently wore her new outfit, while Naruto's was neatly folded and lay next to her. Her plain and inconspicuous outfit consisted of a pair of khaki baggy pants, of which she had cut open her right pants pocket, so she could secretly draw upon her kunai that were hidden underneath her baggy pants in her leg kunai pouch. In addition to her pants, she wore an olive green wool shirt and a dark sepia-toned traveling cloak. For Naruto, Sakura had chosen equally baggy pants but in navy blue. His right pants pocket was also customized by her because just like her, Naruto liked to wear his own kunai pouch on his right thigh. Ironically, Sakura had found a plain black wool shirt that had a tiny orange toad stitched a little over his heart and without a second thought had bought it for him. A second brown traveler's cloak just like hers finished off the small pile of clothing for Naruto.

Sakura drenched a piece of cloth in water before wiping clean Naruto's mouth that was still partially covered by his own bile and vomit. Sakura had been wracking her brain in trying to figure out what disease plagued him but she couldn't find an answer. She had checked for possible poisons or other foreign toxins in his system but couldn't find anything. She had checked for a potential viral or bacterial infection but even that didn't get her any closer to receiving an answer. Sakura had tried everything that she could think of but was unsuccessful with each new attempt. She even went as far as getting herself summoned to the slug realm to talk to Katsuyu and ask the mighty slug queen if she might have a potential answer or at least an idea of what my have afflicted Naruto. But even Katsuyu, who had learned as much about healing from Tsunade as Sakura did and more, was speechless after hearing of Naruto's condition.

Then there was also the problem that involved Sakura and Naruto. Akina, Sakura's personal summon had successfully returned to the slug realm after having fulfilled Sakura's orders to head towards the ocean and pull possible pursuit of Sakura and Naruto's trail. Akina had questioned her mother Katsuyu, if Sakura had already explained why Akina was not allowed to trust other Leaf shinobi or even Tsunade-hime. Katsuyu had questioned Sakura first hand upon her arrival in the slug realm and Sakura looked dejected as she tried to explain to the slugs of what had occurred. In the end, Sakura had asked Katsuyu to send her back to Naruto. And that in case of being summoned by Tsunade, the slug queen would keep it a secret about having spoken to Sakura. Katsuyu had agreed and sworn upon her personal honor that Tsunade would not discern of Sakura's and Naruto's whereabouts.

That happened two days ago and ever since then, Sakura had summoned several young slugs that were technically still infants and ordered them to act as lookouts and warn her if someone would approach her hiding place. "Naruto what's wrong with you?" Sakura whispered as she brushed through the blond locks again.

Sakura let out a concerned sigh and wondered for how long she could stay here with Naruto before being discovered. Sakura had already thought about traveling towards Suna, hoping to find refuge among Gaara and his siblings' village but it was a long way towards the Country of Wind and would take weeks if not months if Naruto's condition didn't improve soon. She washed another piece of cloth in the make shift bowl of water that originally had been a metal helmet that she had found inside the warrior tomb after having given the tomb a close inspection. She dabbed the wet cloth over Naruto's face and started humming a soft tune that her mother had always sung when Sakura was sick. The shadows in the tomb were dancing to the soft and warm light of the oil lamp and Sakura enjoyed watching their peculiar dance and briefly forgot about her worries.

Sakura could continue like this for hours with Naruto's head resting on her knees as she would take care of him but she was suddenly pulled out of her thoughtless thoughts by one of the young slug sentries.

"Lady Pinky," the young slug spoke up in a whisper. "A lone female is approaching your position."

Sakura's eye twitched at hearing the nickname Akina had used and looked at the tiny slug that wasn't much bigger than a regular snail. Sakura saw the tiny slug sport a pink hue and Sakura frowned, "Akina is that you?"

"No my Lady, I am still too young to be given the honor of receiving a name but Akina-hime is my mother."

Sakura blinked, "Get the fuck out… Akina already had children?"

"Yes my Lady, as you command my Lady. I will leave you alone with your male."

Confused, Sakura frowned when she saw the slug slither towards the exit of the tomb. "Wait, I didn't literally mean for you to get out." Sakura paused, "Did you say someone was approaching my position? From which direction and how far away is that person?"

The slug stopped and turned around, "Yes my Lady. My sisters and I have spotted the intruder and have carefully stalked the woman. She should arrive at the base of the waterfall in a few minutes."

"Shit," Sakura muttered and gently shifted Naruto's head out of her lap and placed him to rest on the makeshift bed off moss. "How do you know it's a woman? Can you tell me more?"

"Her scent is that of a female and she appears to be well trained," the tiny pink slug answered and slithered forward.

Sakura stood up and looked with concern at Naruto's prone form, "I guess I have to bring the quarry to bay."

The miniature slug turned its head slightly. "Excuse my brashness Lady Sakura, but what are you going to do?"

Sakura looked down at the tiny slug and smiled, "I will just have to confront that woman and find out what she wants."

"Ah," the slug sung. "I understand now. What do you wish for me and my sisters to do? Will you need assistance?"

"No thanks, I can handle this but could you please keep an eye on Naruto. He is very sick and I would feel a lot better if you could watch over him while I am gone."

"As you wish my Lady," the tiny slug said and slithered on top of Naruto. The slug stopped as it sat on Naruto's forehead. Sakura giggled at seeing a tiny trail of slug mucus on Naruto's face. Sakura left before she heard the slug sing, "Good luck Lady Pinky, may the blessings of our queen be upon you."

"Thanks," Sakura said as she moved aside the slab of rock to exit the tomb. "But my name is Sakura and you may tell your mother that I will kill her next time I see her for even suggesting you to call me Pinky."

Sakura exited and moved the slab of stone back into place before she could hear the slug's response. Sakura quickly jumped into the trees and hid her presence as she waited for the stranger to arrive. Sakura had a kunai drawn and her eyes scanned her surroundings carefully.

As she was sitting in her tree for several minutes, the intruder still had not shown herself. Perched high in the crown of the tree, Sakura contemplated the options of the stranger having turned around but wondered if that was the case why her slug sentries hadn't notified her yet. No, something was definitely strange but Sakura couldn't quite place her finger on it. After more minutes passed of inaction, Sakura readied herself to drop down from her hidden position and check on Naruto. It was just as she readied herself to reveal herself that she realized that something was terribly wrong.

The birds that inhabited this part of the forest were silent and no longer singing their happy tune as they had only mere moments ago. The wind that had gently pushed its way through the forest had all but halted and died down. But what tipped Sakura off was the thundering sound of the distant waterfall missing.

"Shit," Sakura muttered and quickly flashed through the tiger and ram seal as she whispered, "Kai!" Sakura felt the genjutsu lift from her and her eyes frantically scanned the canopies of the nearby trees before moving on to studying the ground below her. Her eyes widened in horror when she saw a woman materialize from thin air right in front of the burial mound where Naruto lay inside. Sakura silently cursed and stealthily dropped down to the forest floor and dashed from tree to tree to get closer to the potential enemy.

Sakura carefully approached the unknown shinobi woman and could tell that the person was well trained by the way the woman moved. As the shinobi took another step towards the tomb, Sakura jumped out from behind a tree and summoned her chakra into her right foot as she slammed it down hard into the ground. Her Painful Sky Leg reverberated through the forest in a large explosion and she watched the shockwave of her attack rush towards the unknown woman. The earth split as the shockwave traveled through the ground and created an ever growing fracture that raced at the speed of sound towards the woman.

Sakura watched the woman whirl around in surprise at the sudden disturbance she had created and instantly dropped into a defensive fighting stance. To Sakura's surprise, the woman wore a Konoha Anbu mask and Sakura's eyes narrowed dangerously as she realized that this Anbu was not simply looking for Naruto and her, no that Anbu was sent to kill them.

Sakura straightened and slowly in measured steps walked towards the Anbu woman, "I won't let you inside. You will have to fight me first."

Sakura watched the Anbu flash through several hand signs that were too fast to follow and the Anbu vanished into thin air without muttering a single word. By instinct, Sakura jumped back several meters to increase the distance between her and her enemy. "You know, you suck at casting this genjutsu. I can tell it's one because you seem to have forgotten to add the background noise, or perhaps you don't have the talent to do so." Sakura mocked the invisible Anbu and smiled as she went through yet another genjutsu cancel.

Sakura's eyes however widened in surprise and shock as she registered the bright glint of a sword blade descend upon her. Sakura dodged but felt the sword nip her on the right arm. Sakura winced at the sharp pain and reflexively put her left hand over her wound. Sakura put another few meters between her and the Anbu and summoned some quick chakra to heal her wounded arm. "I guess I underestimated you," Sakura gritted through clenched teeth as the thumping pain in her arm slowly lessened.

The Anbu flashed through the same set of seals again and this time Sakura could see them all and she instantly knew this genjutsu and the dangers behind it. Scolding herself at not catching this earlier, Sakura quickly ran to the sides, knowing that staying in motion was the best way to defeat this genjutsu if one was too busy to dispel it. Having finished healing her arm, Sakura quickly released the genjutsu again and was shocked anew at seeing the Anbu woman standing right in front of her with her sword already swinging.

"Damn she is fast," Sakura muttered as she ducked under the swing that was aimed at beheading her. Sakura dropped to her knees and made to swipe the Anbu off her feet but the woman easily jumped over Sakura's sweeping leg. Sakura's eyes widened in fear as she realized her mistake and used the last bit of momentum to back roll away from another downward slash by the sword. But unlike as before Sakura had run out of luck and the sword slashed into her leg.

Sakura cried out in pain as the cold steel of the sword bit into her shin and bone. Sakura fell backwards upon her butt and desperately scrambled away, keeping one eye on the Anbu and another on her blood gushing leg. _"That was close,"_ Sakura told herself. _"A few inches deeper and I would have lost my lower leg."_ Sakura saw the shadow of the Anbu grow over her and she knew she was in trouble.

The Anbu smiled beneath her mask as she sliced into Sakura's leg. _"Fuck, had I been a bit faster she would have lost her leg."_ The Anbu mused in her head as she watched the pink haired kunoichi scramble away and pulling a motionless leg after herself in a smear of red blood. _"This is it,"_ the Anbu mused. _"Press the attack, don't let the enemy catch their breath, don't let her heal, and avoid her insane strength with all costs,"_ the masked woman repeated these guidelines over and over as she stepped closer to Sakura.

The masked Anbu sprang high into the air and readied herself to deliver the final blow when she finally spoke, "You're mine now Haruno. I will restore my honor and return to Konoha with yours and the demon's heads between my hands."

The sword flew true to its aim. "Victory is mine," the woman yelled in glee as her sword sliced off half of Sakura's terrified face. She watched the limp body that once had been Sakura Haruno collapse to the ground at the Anbu's feet. The masked woman let out a maniac cackle as she prodded the pink haired corpse with her feet to ensure that the medic-nin before her was really dead.

"Shannaro!"

The Anbu whirled around at the sudden war cry from Sakura and her eyes widened in disbelief as they fell upon a raging pinkette rushing towards her on two healthy legs and a right fist cocked far behind the body. The woman looked from the dashing Sakura down to her feet where she had believed the real Sakura should have been and was surprised at finding that Sakura turning into a wooden log. "Impossible," the woman yelled in anger right before Sakura's chakra enhanced fist connected with the woman's face mask.

_-- Several moments ago! --_

Sakura watched the sword strike coming for her and she couldn't help but stare at the cold steel rushing down to meet with her flesh. Survival instincts took over and Sakura performed a Kawarimi.

Sakura reappeared next to a giant tree behind the Anbu woman and was glad that Kakashi had forced her to learn this technique in her early days as Team 7 to perfection. She could now perform the Body Replacement Technique without the help of forming seals and for the first time in Sakura's shinobi career, something that Kakashi had taught her had actually helped. She sent a silent thank you towards her former sensei before falling with her weight against the tree as her injured leg was useless at the moment.

Sakura slid down the side of the tree trunk and breathed heavily as she saw an ever growing pool of blood collect around her sliced up leg. "I need time," Sakura said to herself and had an idea. She smiled wickedly and flashed through the same hand seals as the Anbu did and turned the genjutsu on the attacker.

Sure, Sakura wasn't specializing in fighting with genjutsu but through Tsunade's medical training and her natural affinity to detect and counter genjutsu, Sakura had taken it upon herself to study genjutsu and had found an eager and willing teacher in Kurenai Yuhi. Whenever Sakura had run into a dead end or needed tips, Kurenai was willing to teach and help and that was how Sakura had learned about this specific genjutsu that was classified as an Anbu A-rank genjutsu. It was called Kagami Seken Genkaku or Mirror's World Illusion and was able to replicate the exact environment the user was currently in. If the user was exceptionally skilled at molding chakra, this technique could also imitate sound, rain, or anything else that the senses would experience.

Keeping the Kawarimi up was the easiest part of the entire genjutsu because Sakura sure as hell wanted to get this done perfectly. She watched the Anbu prod the dead corpse of the fake Sakura carefully with her foot and Sakura let out a sigh in relief. "Thank kami that this worked. I really need to thank Kurenai-sensei for showing this technique to me," Sakura muttered as she turned her attention to her bleeding leg. Sakura ingested a blood pill and a soldier pill to replenish her reserves and started healing her leg.

The pain was excruciating but Sakura suffered through it using Naruto as her inspiration. "Naruto, I will protect you this time. I will not give up," Sakura talked herself strong as she studied her bleeding leg. Pearls of sweat ran down her face in concentration and felt a cold numbness settle into her leg as she healed the last bit of her rend flesh. She pushed herself to her feet and felt a searing hot pain shoot up her leg and into her spine as she carefully tested her newly mended leg.

Sakura winced but swallowed the growing discomfort from her leg away and she set her angry eyes on the back of the Anbu woman. "I have to end this now before I take more injuries," Sakura mumbled and rushed forward. Summoning chakra into her right fist as she neared the woman's back, she yelled her signature war cry to announce her arrival and stun the enemy simultaneously. It worked when the woman turned around and looked straight at Sakura caught off guard and dumbfounded.

Sakura smirked and unleashed her bone shattering fist and slammed it into the Anbu's face. The facemask cracked and crumbled into tiny pieces and the sound of bone breaking under Sakura's fist echoed through the forest spooking birds into the air. Sakura watched the Anbu get launched away from her attack and quickly rushed after the flying woman.

Sakura landed on a tree branch as she saw the Anbu impact the trunk of a tree. Sakura saw the woman impact the tree back first and another ear splitting crack of bones was heard and Sakura almost felt sorry as she watched the woman tumble to the ground hitting more branches on the way down than it was even possible.

In an unmoving heap of flesh and bones, the woman rested at the base of the tree and Sakura jumped down. She landed in front of the woman and slowly walked over as she pulled a kunai from her newly bought pants and only now realized that her civilian clothes were ruined. She growled in anger but was glad that she had actually bought a second set for herself. Sakura hunched low and pulled the head of the woman back as Sakura fisted the Anbu's matt black hair.

"YOU!" Sakura yelled as she got a good look at the woman's broken in face. "You're that annoying nurse that transferred over from the Anbu medical wing and wouldn't leave me alone for an entire day."

The woman tried to laugh but only choked on her own blood that was pooling in her mouth from her broken face. "Yet you still succeeded in leaving Konoha and going after that demon brat," the Anbu wheezed and spit out her blood.

Sakura's eyes darted back and forth as her brain ran in overdrive, "What was your mission? Were you supposed to kill me while I was working in the hospital? Who sent you? Answer me?" Sakura yelled as she slammed the woman's head against the trunk of the tree.

The woman only laughed again as she choked upon more blood, "I won't talk Haruno. I survived Ibiki Morino's torture sessions without breaking. What makes you think I will talk now? You might as well just kill me because I won't talk. I am as good as dead regardless. I have failed."

Sakura's eyes narrowed slightly and Sakura busted out laughing, "Under Ibiki-san you say? Did you know that my friend Ino is apprenticed under Ibiki? Before that Ino was apprenticed under the Hokage as well but she was transferred over to Ibiki-san. And do you want to know why?"

Sakura smugly smirked, "It's because Ino has a tendency to cause excruciating pain to those that she tries to heal. I'll spare you the details, but Ibiki-san loves Ino's approach of interrogation. I think I will test it out on you, make sure you tell me how much better this is as Ibiki-san." Sakura finished and slammed a chakra enhanced fist into the woman's knee shattering it.

The Anbu screamed in pain only to double over again as Sakura shattered the other knee. "You bitch," the woman hissed. "I won't talk. This is painful but pain will pass in time."

Sakura nodded, "That is true but you forgot I am a medic and I am sure you have never felt the pain of feeling your bones re-grow without the anesthetic affects of chakra. Luckily, Ino showed me how to disable it so that I can heal and inflict pain simultaneously. Isn't that glorious? Do you know what Ino's record is at breaking someone down?"

The woman shook her head, "I don't care. You won't get any information from me."

"2 minutes," Sakura answered and slammed her fingers deep into the sides of the woman as a new terrifying scream echoed through the forest. "That just now was one of your kidney's exploding inside of you. Are you ready to talk now or should I start healing you using Ino's special technique?" Sakura growled and slammed another fist into the lower gut. "And now I just imploded your ovaries."

"What do you want to know?" The woman whimpered in pain. "I'll tell you whatever you want but please don't," her pleads stopped at seeing Sakura smile. "W-what?"

"Oh it's nothing," Sakura smiled. "I think I just broke Ino-pig's record." Sakura placed a healing hand over the woman's womb, "There now, I am not a monster after all."

"T-thank you," the Anbu said stunned at being healed. "What do you want to know?"

"Everything," Sakura replied as she narrowed her eyes studying the dark haired woman. "What happened to Tsunade-sama? Why did Sai betray us and what was Orochimaru doing there? And why are you hunting me and Naruto?"

The woman spat out another load of blood, "It was all Danzo-sama. He poisoned the Hokage that forced her to obey his every command. He used the demon as a scapegoat to rally the village behind him. Only a few days ago, he announced the Hokage's death to the village and yours too. He told them that the demon had betrayed Konoha and attacked the Hokage and you. He made up a story claiming the Kyuubi had controlled the Third Hokage and others in Konoha and that was the reason why Orochimaru left the village as well as the Uchiha. It's all just a plot of Danzo to rule the village and conquer the surrounding shinobi nations. Konoha has allied with Otogakure now and together they plan on conquering everyone and everything. They are just using the Kyuubi brat as a scapegoat and you were supposed to be the bright and shining beacon, the one leading the troops in revenge of your teacher's death but you secretly left Konoha and I was supposed to stop you but you tricked me by forcing me to attend an operation."

Sakura smiled as she remembered the satisfaction of having had stuck the ever present new nurse that was hovering around her into a long lasting operation. "I guess that explains a lot. Now what? Why are you out here all alone? Where is your team?"

"I have no team. I was sent by Danzo-sama to kill you two or else my life would have been forfeit."

"I see," Sakura stood up and walked away only to be stopped at the woman's voice speaking out to her.

"Haruno-san," the Anbu Root woman wheezed. "I am dying aren't I?" Sakura looked at the woman's eyes and nodded. "I see. Well I knew I would have never lived long after my failure but listen carefully. The Hokage, she isn't dead. Danzo has her locked away in a secret underground prison underneath the Hokage tower. Only Root members know of its location."

"Why are you telling me all of this?" Sakura asked.

"Because… because I am a citizen of Konoha just like you. I've had family once, I love my home and even though I obey my Lord Danzo's orders to the letter, I still can't help but feel burdened by the outcome of this all. Perhaps one day, perhaps you can rescue our home from the darkness it's falling into."

"Perhaps," Sakura said and turned to walk to the tomb to change into a new pair of baggy pants and to dress Naruto and start moving again. It was no longer safe here and Sakura knew she had to get Naruto and herself out of the Fire Country as soon as possible. She packed everything quickly and picked up Naruto's unconscious form into her arms.

She walked back outside and stopped by the Anbu woman, whose eyes were already glazing over. "Good bye," the woman muttered in a weak voice not even having the strength to look up. "Haruno-san, if you value your life, never return to Konoha. Forget all about it, start a new life somewhere far away where Danzo and Root won't find you. Live a happy life, raise a family, and grow old. But if in the off chance that you cannot let this pass, I implore you to take your time. Grow stronger, train hard, and find allies because you will need them."

"Thank you again," Sakura bowed her head slightly. "What is your name?"

"We do not have names in Root," the woman said and a small smile appeared on her lips. "But I can recall my parents calling me Yomiko before Danzo and his people whisked me away from my home."

"Yomiko," Sakura rolled the name in her mouth. "I can't promise you anything but one day I am sure I will return to Konoha and kill Danzo and I will make sure that your name will be carved into the memorial stone."

"Thank you Haruno-san," the woman said and the last bit of life faded from her eyes and Sakura knew that the Anbu Root member called Yomiko had died. Saying a quick prayer to send her spirit off, Sakura tightened her hold on Naruto in her arms and jumped into the trees heading straight for Lightning Country.

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**Translation (if my online translator didn't fail me):**

**Kagami Seken Genkaku – Mirror's World Illusion**

**Also something quick to mention, I know that Sakura's portrayal in the first chapter comes across as overly bitchy and obsessively controlling but I tried to show some of her jealous traits. I don't know why, but Sakura in my opinion could be one of those very jealous girls that would never trust you with anything. That is not what I want to do with her though, so don't panic.**

**Um, to answer a few things that came up in the reviews. Yes, there will be timeskips, in fact I have two planned. A minor one and a major one shortly after, however, none of that is final. At first I didn't want to touch on the other Naruto characters (Kakashi, Rookie 9, etc.) but I believe there is no way around it. I simply have to show their side of this story as well. So, yeah, the next chapter will be the birth of the resistance movement.  
I also realized that I killed off Jiraiya a little too hastily but I realized half way through that he needed to be gone, so instead of spendind a lot of time thinking up a better way to make it happen, I just threw it out there. Sorry if some were dissappointed with that.**

**So leave your reviews, suggestions, criticism, and/or praise.  
**


	3. Birth

**A/N: Oh look some author notes at the beginning! Anyways, I am keeping this brief. I hope you enjoy this chapter and I have to say I really really like this one. **

**I had a rocky start at the beginning and realized my plans for the Resistance movement is a lot more complicated and difficult to pull off as originally thought. If you have questions, let me know and I'll try to answer them. I also hope I caught the majority of mistakes in this chapter.**

* * *

**Fūrinkazan**

Chapter – 3

"Birth"

It had been less than a week since Danzou had made the announcement in front of the entire village that Naruto had betrayed Konoha and in the process had killed their beloved Godaime Hokage Tsunade as well as rape and murder her apprentice Sakura.

Less than a week in which Naruto was revealed to be the Kyuubi no Kitsune reincarnate to Konohagakure's generation and less than a week the hated Oto-nin had become a steady presence inside the village's walls. Konoha was currently preparing for war and Otogakure had become Danzou's strongest supporter. Sunagakure had silently accepted the shift in power in Konoha but rumors were spreading quick and far that the Kazekage was debating abolishing the Alliance between the Sand and the Leaf.

However, nothing was as disturbing as seeing a mass of Root Anbu swarming around Konoha and arresting civilians and ninja alike that voiced their opinion about the changes inside their home village. Some families had already announced their intentions of leaving Konoha, and under the disguise of ensuring Konoha's safety and security, were put under strict observation by Danzou. Yet, the majority of Konoha had happily accepted Danzou's rule and claimed that after sixteen long years, they could finally sleep peacefully at night knowing that the Kyuubi brat would be hunted down and put to death.

But ignorance breed's stupidity and none realized that Danzou had absolutely no intention in wasting manpower in the search for Naruto. Danzou knew that Naruto would not dare approach Konoha for fear of losing his own life. Danzou was also secretly counting on Akatsuki in finishing off the Kyuubi, even as his own plans for Akatsuki's destruction were already set in motion. Danzou had sent out those Jounin that were favored by Tsunade and had ordered them to search and destroy the criminal organization. Among the many that were sent on this suicide mission were potentially two of Konoha's strongest Jounin fighters, Kakashi and Gai. Danzou secretly wished that Akatsuki and those potential troublesome Jounin would kill each other off before Danzou had to send in his precious Root agents to finish off those that had survived his purge of the Jounin ranks.

The day of the official funerals in which the thought believed dead Hokage Tsunade and her apprentice Sakura had been honored and put to rest had past only yesterday and with the help of Kabuto's research in creating fake corpses that could pass off as real ones, Oto medic-nin created two such fake corpses, one for Tsunade and one for Sakura. These corpses had been created within the Root medical wing and the outcome was flawless. Even Shizune, the long apprentice under Tsunade's care had been fooled and had been one of Danzou's strongest factors in strengthening his hold on Konoha as the black haired woman had broken down crying after announcing that those corpses were indeed Tsunade and Sakura.

It was another day of unhindered rain and Hinata was slowly and aimlessly shuffling through the streets of Konoha. Her spirit crushed under the revelation that Naruto was the Kyuubi and had killed Tsunade and Sakura. Hinata couldn't believe that Naruto would go as far as raping the woman he had claimed to love all his life and then simply dispose of Sakura as if she was a toy. A cold shudder had run down Hinata's spine when the realization set in that her idol was nothing more than a monster and that it could have been her and not Sakura that had suffered the fate of rape and death.

However, as Hinata walked through Konoha, she couldn't help but experience a strange feeling. The love she once held for Naruto had not left her heart, it had dimmed and kept her company even as nightmares plagued her in her sleep. Nightmares, in which Naruto raped her and in the process transformed into the mighty and powerful Kyuubi before killing her by tearing out Hinata's throat as the young Hyuuga screamed for help.

Hinata had no explanation for her continued love but a part of her was terrified of what Naruto was and had become. Yet deep down she still held adoration for the person that had given her the strength to exceed her own expectations. Deep down, Hinata knew in her soul that Naruto was not whom everyone in the village claimed to be. Hinata couldn't let go of the feeling that she was being lied to. She couldn't believe that Naruto was the Kyuubi, that Naruto would kill Tsunade, let alone rape Sakura and kill her in the process. She wanted to believe in the image she had of Naruto but she felt that she was alone with those feelings.

"Hinata-sama," Neji spoke up softly and placed a warm hand on her shoulder to stop the drenched girl from continuing to aimlessly walk the streets. "You will catch a cold Hinata-sama, please return home."

"W-what?" Hinata muttered and blinked away the water out of her eyes as the rain washed over it. Her eyes focused and she took a shocked step backwards as her eyes fell upon the charred remains that once had been a small apartment complex. "Why?" She asked nobody in particular.

"This is where Naruto lived, is it not?" Neji asked gloomily.

Hinata nodded and answered weakly, "Yes it was. Neji-san, why would they do something like this? W-what is happening to Konoha?"

"Humanity fears what they don't understand and that leads to hate. I am sorry you had to find out about this but Hinata-sama, it is not safe here to stay any longer." Neji said and slowly pushed Hinata forward and her legs slowly obeyed.

"I-I don't believe Naruto did what they told us," Hinata whispered low enough for only Neji to hear and the Hyuuga branch member let out a quiet but sad sigh.

"Hinata, Neji," Shino said as he jumped down from a nearby roof and landed in front of them. "We are all meeting at Shikamaru's and he has asked for you two to come as well."

"I am sorry Shino but Hinata-sama needs to go home before she catches a cold."

"No," Hinata muttered and pushed Neji's comforting hand off her shoulders. "I am fine. Let's go Shino-kun."

Neji sighed and silently followed them to the Nara residence. The reached the compound within a few minutes and walked inside after having been greeted by Shikamaru's mother. As they were told, they followed a certain hallway that lead towards a pair of closed sliding doors. When they reached them, Shino slid them apart and they stepped inside and were surprised at the people inside.

"Ah you three have finally arrived," Shikamaru muttered. "Now that we are complete, Gaara if you would please."

The Kazekage nodded and sand spilled out of his gourd and covered the entire room in a massive sand dome. Within this dome of sand, Shikamaru sat around a small table with the Sand siblings, Kurenai and the rest of the Konoha Nine.

"What's the meaning of this?" Neji asked in worry and a bit of a surprise as his vision fell upon his two teammates Lee and Tenten. "What are you two doing here?"

"We were told to come here as you were Neji-kun," Tenten replied while Lee merely nodded.

"Alright everyone, please sit down and listen up," Shikamaru started. "We have assembled here so we can discuss the latest revelations concerning Naruto. Gaara, Temari, and Kankuro have come upon my request as well because they had known about Naruto's circumstances a lot longer than anyone here. Besides them, Sakura, Kurenai-sensei, the other Jounin instructors, as well as Sai knew that Naruto held the Kyuubi imprisoned within him."

Several nods were seen, "However, I would like to hear all of your opinions and thoughts about this matter."

"What's there to say?" Ino yelled with tears running down her red puffy eyes as she looked up from Choji's lap. "H-he killed them Shikamaru, he killed them as if they were nothing. N-Naruto, he is a monster."

"Ino you don't mean this," Choji said and for the first time he wasn't seen snacking while talking. "Naruto isn't the Kyuubi. You, as well as everyone here know better. Naruto isn't the Kyuubi, he is merely the container for it and keeps it sealed and guarded so the demon fox would not finish Konoha's destruction. We fought with Naruto for years and he never hurt anyone and always avoiding killing."

"Shut up Choji," Ino yelled again and wiped away her tears to reveal an angry face. "Naruto raped Sakura, he raped her, and then he killed her. I was with Shizune when she did the autopsy of Tsunade and Sakura. Don't tell me that Naruto isn't a monster. You should have seen them you should have seen Sakura. She didn't resemble anything human anymore and the terror in her cold dead eyes," Ino hugged herself. "Sakura's eyes held so much pain and terrifying fear… no, Naruto is a monster, he has to be to do something like this to someone he claimed he loved."

"Uzumaki is not a monster," Gaara's cold voice spoke up. "I know because I once was the Jinchuuriki of the Ichibi and Naruto was the one that helped me change my destiny. Naruto made me understand that there is more to life than kill or be killed. I do not believe an instant that Naruto lost control over the Kyuubi."

"What the hell do you know? You're a monster just like Naruto." Ino screamed and abruptly stood up. "Let me out of this room right now. I-I don't want to have anything to do with you people. Y-you're all being tricked by Gaara and I bet Naruto talked him into this. Naruto wants to destroy Konoha and the lucky ones will be killed but the unlucky ones will be humiliated, raped, and left to die alone."

"Ino…"

"No Choji, it's alright." Shikamaru sadly answered and motioned for Gaara to create an opening for Ino to leave. "If anyone else wants to follow Ino, now is the time. None of us will think differently about you but I think none of us present here really believe that Naruto let alone Gaara are monsters."

"I am sorry," Choji said as he stood up. "I don't believe that Naruto is the Kyuubi or lost control over it. But…"

Shikamaru smiled, "Troublesome Choji. Go ahead and follow Ino. I'll trust you'll keep her safe and out of trouble."

Choji nodded, "Thanks Shikamaru and good luck."

Shikamaru sighed as he watched Choji leave through the door that Gaara's sand held open. The sand dome closed around everyone again and the small group was once again safe within it.

"E-excuse me," Hinata spoke up weakly and eeped as the attention of the room was on her. She shrunk in size and hid behind her cousin.

"What is it Hinata?" Shikamaru spoke up and motioned for her to sit down around the table like everyone else. "You as well Neji and Shino, have a seat."

"I'd rather stand," Shino muttered into his overly large collar-obscuring coat but Neji and Hinata followed Shikamaru's invitation to have a seat.

"I am sorry to speak up," Hinata started as she sat. "I, about Naruto-kun… I-I don't believe he killed Tsunade and Sakura."

"We agree," Shikamaru replied and the Suna siblings nodded in approval. "Naruto would never put the Hokage or Sakura in danger, let alone attack them. I believe we and all of Konoha are being tricked by Danzou. I wish Shizune and Ino wouldn't be as devastated about this as they are because none of us were present during the autopsy. It is difficult to understand what really happened but one thing I am absolutely certain and that is that Naruto did not kill the Hokage or Sakura and is still out there somewhere in hiding."

"So what are you suggesting?" Kiba spoke up as he petted Akamaru. "That we leave Konoha in search of Naruto?"

"No," Shikamaru said strongly. "We will continue as if this never happened. Danzou's plans are still mostly unknown but one thing we do know and that is that we will be sent away from Konoha on missions very soon. Danzou wants to wipe out Akatsuki and from what I have gathered from his little speech a week ago, I wouldn't be surprised if he decides to invade other countries as well. When you're out on missions, keep your eyes and ears trained for any clues that might lead us to Naruto but never search for him directly. I am sure we are all under heavy surveillance by Danzou. Only trust the people inside this room. Don't trust Sai, I am almost certain that he works for Danzou and besides Naruto, he might be the only other person that might know what really happened to the Hokage. Sai was traveling with the Hokage and he miraculously survived a Kyuubi attack unscathed? I find that hard to believe."

"You want us to spy within our own village?" Neji asked in confusion.

"Yes," Shikamaru agreed and his eyes settled on Hinata. "Hinata?"

"H-hai?"

"Would you be willing to take the position of being our leader? Nobody would suspect you of any ill intentions. Your shyness and soft demeanor is the perfect disguise and with Kurenai-sensei's help, you would be the ideal person. Your status within the Hyuuga clan would also prevent you from going onto dangerous missions and you would be inside Konoha's walls most of the times out of all of us."

"Out of the question," Neji said loudly. "Hinata-sama cannot take such a dangerous and important position. If word reaches Danzou's ears, we are all doomed and Hinata-sama would not be spared. I can't allow this Shikamaru, Hinata-sama's safety is part of my priority."

"Neji-san," Hinata said weakly. "I-I want to do this, for Naruto. I know I can do this, please let me."

"But Hinata-sama," Neji said and looked at the determined eyes of his cousin. Neji sighed in defeat, "As you wish but I will never leave your side."

"Thank you," Gaara spoke up. "I think its time that I visit this Danzou and inform him that the Alliance between Suna and Konoha will continue."

"Also Shino," Shikamaru spoke up before anyone could rise to leave. "You and Neji will be in charge of security whenever we meet. Your insects are perfect and if possible we need to find a way to use them to relay information between each other without having to fear of our information getting intercepted by Danzou."

Shino nodded, "I will have a solution to that problem within several weeks. I already have an idea but I will need time to grow a sizeable colony to support this endeavor of yours. You can count on my help."

"Mine as well," Kiba said while smirking. Akamaru barked and Kiba laughed, "I didn't forget you boy. Akamaru will also help and the Inuzuka hounds will help as well."

"Yosh! The will of fire burns bright amongst us. I will pledge my fists to uncover the truth."

"Lee…" Tenten sighed and nodded at Shikamaru telling him she would help as well.

"Suna will also aid as best as we can. I will have Temari permanently stationed here for the time being. I will entrust her and her squad to your safety Nara. Kankuro is going to be patrolling the borders and keep a look out for Naruto."

"Thank you Gaara," Shikamaru said and spared Temari a glance and he mentally sighed. "I trust that you will keep this entire meeting a secret. Remember, do not trust anyone outside of this room and do not speak of any of this until Shino has completed his preparations."

Several nodded and Gaara opened a door out of the sand dome as people started to rise and leave. "Shino, Hinata, and Kurenai please remain. Everyone else, you may leave. Neji you can wait of course, but outside please."

Neji looked from Shikamaru to Hinata and saw her give him a small nod saying that she would be fine and he nodded before leaving with the rest of the people. The sand door closed again and Shikamaru was alone in the room with Gaara, Hinata, Kurenai, and Shino."

"I am sorry Shino but I need to know what you have in mind with these insects."

Shino didn't speak for a while until he raised his left arm and a large black beetle with six legs, two long feelers and a set of giant mandibles scurried onto the back of his hand. Hinata gasped at the sight and Shino's low monotone voice followed quickly with an explanation.

"This is the Manticora, it is a tiger beetle and just like its brothers, it is predatory in nature. It is a nocturnal creature and flightless but is one of the fastest land animals, if you compare its body size to its top speed. There is a sub-class of the Manticora that is only a fraction of the size of this male and their mandibles are used for communication. Their main purposes of the mandibles however are for copulation. With training and proper breeding, they can talk to each other and relay information over great distances via an ultra sonic sound wave. However, only beetles of the same colony are able to communicate with one another. Therefore I will need time to breed and once the colony reaches the ideal size, I will have them scurry around Konoha and they will keep our meetings safe from unwanted ears by informing us immediately if we have spies near by."

Shikamaru nodded as he studied the large beetle on Shino's hand, "I understand but you mentioned that they were nocturnal."

"That is true," Shino admitted. "Therefore I suggest we only meet at nights. It will ensure that the beetles are not seen while they invade everything within Konoha. I will also give a female to each of us in order to ensure our safety. If one of us ever encounters danger within the walls of Konoha, the female will send out a distress call and every male in the colony will immediately rush towards the female to protect her."

Gaara raised an eyebrow, "What can these little bugs do against a fully grown human, let alone a trained shinobi?"

"Kazekage-sama, you would be surprised what a swarm of thousands of these Manticora can do to a human."

"Duly noted," Gaara replied and turned to Kurenai. "Yuuhi-san, I understand that you are risking not only your life but that of your young son as well in this. Are you sure you wish to do this?"

Kurenai nodded as she looked from Hinata to Gaara. "Yes, I understand the risks perfectly and once Kakashi and his group return from their mission to hunt down Akatsuki, I am sure more of us Jounin will join in. If it's alright with you and Shikamaru, I would like to assist Hinata in her duties of being the leader of this resistance. Being her sensei, my spending time with her will not raise any questions and I can also act as a liaison to the adult shinobi of Konoha that are resenting Danzou's rule in secret."

"Thank you Kurenai-sensei," Shikamaru said and looked at the genjutsu mistress. "You and Shino may leave now, we will follow shortly. There is something Gaara and I need to discuss with Hinata by ourselves."

Kurenai rose and followed Shino out of the sand doom and greeted Neji, who stood less than a foot away from the sand walls that barred his view immediately once Kurenai and Shino had exited the room. Hinata shifted uneasily and looked back and forth between Gaara and Shikamaru.

"W-what is it you want with me Shikamaru-san, Kazekage-sama?"

"Hinata are you sure you wish to do this?" Shikamaru asked and saw the young Hyuuga eagerly nod. He smiled to reassure her and saw her stiff shoulders relax a little, "Gaara let Shizune in."

On the other side of the sand dome, directly opposite from where the others had exited, the sand parted and revealed a small door. It opened and Shizune stepped inside and sat down next to Shikamaru.

"S-Shizune-san," Hinata gasped. "What are you doing here?"

Shizune looked at Hinata and smiled softly, "Hello Hinata. I am here to inform you of what I have told Shikamaru and the Kazekage-sama only this morning. I am glad that you have decided to step up Hinata-chan and I am here to let you know the truth about Tsunade's and Sakura's deaths."

"What?" Hinata hissed in surprise. "I thought they were dead, you… you said they were dead. I was there, just like the entire village when you announced that those corpses were the Hokage and Sakura-san."

"I know," Shizune said and lowered her head in shame. "I am afraid that I was too grief stricken to see the truth. And hadn't it been for Shikamaru yesterday asking me so many questions about the autopsy, I would have missed my mistakes."

"Mistakes?" Hinata asked in astonishment as her eyes rapidly blinked. Her hands unconsciously clenched together over her heart.

"Yes, those bodies weren't Tsunade and Sakura. They were fake corpses, created by one of Orochimaru's most talented medics. Sakura, Naruto, Sai, and Yamato encountered such a corpse before on one of their missions several months ago and brought it back to Konoha. The techniques used to create such a corpse speak of the skills of the medic but there are always flaws and microscopic mistakes that can't be taken into account when preparing such a ruse. And I realized my mistakes when I recalled missing a vital piece of information that should have been right in front of me had that really been Sakura lying on my autopsy table. You see Hinata, on that mission where they recovered that fake corpse, Sakura-san… Sakura-san was attacked by Naruto."

"S-she was what? When? Why?" Hinata asked in shock.

"Hinata, you have to understand that Naruto can use the Kyuubi's chakra but when he draws too much on it, he begins a transformation and the Kyuubi slowly tries to take hold off him. In one of those instances, the Kyuubi lashed out at Sakura and from the wound she sustained, her cells were tainted by the Kyuubi's chakra. I doubt Sakura herself knows of this, nor do we know if it would cause problems to her in the long run, hence Tsunade and I had decided to keep it a secret. But what is important is that the fake corpse that was to represent Sakura was devoid of any of the Kyuubi's chakra traces. It was the same for the Tsunade corpse, which only means that Naruto didn't lose control over the Kyuubi and couldn't have killed them. The fact that the Sakura corpse's cells never contained traces of the Kyuubi's chakra means that that body was not Sakura to begin with."

"I understand," Hinata muttered as her eyes darted back and forth without looking at anyone. Her mind was clearly racing as she tried to digest the information. She looked up at Shizune, "But why didn't you come forth and announce that Tsunade and Sakura aren't dead. Why didn't you clear Naruto of the charges of being their murderer?"

"Because I can't," Shizune replied. "If Tsunade and Sakura are alive, there are only two options. Either they are hiding with Naruto or they have been taken prisoner by Danzou and are hidden somewhere."

"Also Danzou believes that Shizune is convinced by his mock corpses and will therefore try and recruit her into his fold or at least ask for her cooperation as a medic. She will of course do so but in turn will spy for us." Shikamaru broke in and explained to Hinata a few more details to Shizune's mission.

"But why keep that hidden from everyone else?" Hinata asked finally.

"Because they cannot know the entire truth," Gaara replied. "Even my own sister and brother do not know. You, Shikamaru, Shizune, and I are the only ones that will ever know of the fact that Tsunade and Sakura are not dead. Out of fear of being discovered, we cannot share all of our information but remember Hinata-san, you are the leader, the figure head of this organization…"

"And the four of us here, are the ruling body. You may do as you see fit and order us as you believe is right but major decisions are to be discussed in our little group. For now though, you have complete reign and the four of us from now on will no longer speak to one another until Shino has finished his own preparations with his beetles. You are our Leader Hinata, we entrust our lives and those of Konoha to you. Do not be shy, you have the skills and the knowledge to gain access and information to certain things that none of us have." Shikamaru spoke and rose from where he sat. "Now let us leave once Shizune has left through the back. Neji, Kurenai, and Temari are already waiting outside and are most likely very upset about being left out of this small discussion."

"Hai," Hinata responded and stood as well as Gaara and Shizune joined Shikamaru and Hinata in standing. "I-Thank you Shikamaru. Thank you Kazekage-sama and thank you Shizune as well. I wish all of you the best of luck and stay safe."

Shikamaru smiled and thought, _"Hinata is a natural and I knew she could handle this responsibility."_

And as Shizune left through the back door that Gaara's sand had created, Shikamaru along with Gaara and Hinata walked out the main exit and into the hallway where Neji was impatiently waiting with Temari and the Leaf resistance was formed.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Naruto opened his eyes to darkness and he frowned. His eyes darted around in the blackness but he was unable to make out anything. His next step was to try and raise himself from the comfortable bed he was lying in but Naruto was surprised at finding himself restrained and unable to sit up or roll out. He stopped testing his restraints after realizing that he wasn't strong enough to break them. His last hope was simply calling out and hoping that whoever strapped him down to the bed was near by and would hear him.

"Hello? Is anyone around?"

After what seemed like minutes had passed in the dark room, Naruto sighed and futilely tested his bonds once more. "Oh Kami, I hope Sakura-chan tied me to this bed and not some random psycho," Naruto muttered to himself as he lay tied to the bed. "Might as well make the best of this and talk to the damn fox to find out what I missed out on. Because last I remember was fighting Sasuke and Kami knows how long ago that was."

Naruto closed his eyes as he turned to walk his inner mindscape. His feet hit the all familiar water and Naruto was surprised at finding himself in one of his mind's hallways and not in front of the Kyuubi's cage. He sighed and started wading through the water to search for the dungeon as he liked to call it. "What a day… Can it get any weirder?"

Naruto turned a random corner and his demeanor visibly brightened as he stood at the entrance to the Kyuubi's dungeon. Closing his eyes and whistling a happy tune, Naruto walked in and turned a right to approach the cage. He took several steps and stopped. Naruto opened his eyes and the whistling turned to spluttering and eventually stopped all together at the terrifying sight in front of him.

The bars of the cage were bent or sheared in half by a tremendous force. Giant holes, big enough to squeeze an Akimichi under their clan jutsu through, littered the cage like holes do in a Swiss cheese. Naruto took several careful steps away from the cage in fear of seeing the giant demon pounce upon him. As his legs stirred up the water, something white caught his eye as it floated in the water next to him, "Wait that looked familiar."

Naruto leapt after the white something and in a full-length dive jumped after the floating piece. Having caught what was a piece of paper, Naruto pushed himself out of the ankle deep. He turned the piece of paper around and almost dropped it again as he realized what he was holding. "No," He yelled in shock. "This can't be the seal… how?"

Naruto desperately looked around him, expecting the Kyuubi to jump out at him any second now. He was clutching the torn paper seal close to his heart in a desperate attempt to hope that it would repel the mighty Nine-Tailed once the fox decided to attack. But nothing happened and Naruto warily eyed the mangled cage before him, "What is going on? Why am I not dead?"

Naruto quickly and carefully increased the distance between himself and the cage as he froze in his steps as he heard a thundering noise booming through the corridors of his mindscape. At first the noise was barely noticeable but steadily grew louder as it appeared to close in on him. Startled and terrified, Naruto's watchful eyes dashed madly back and forth as he scanned every dark corner of the room repeatedly and ensuring to never turn his back in the direction of the mangled cage.

Something brushed against Naruto's legs and he looked down. His eyes grew wide in amazement and terror at seeing the water around his legs flow pass him and disappear down the hallway behind him. The thunderous noise grew to an ear deafening noise and Naruto finally turned around and faced this new potential threat. What he saw next made him almost piss his pants and froze the blood in his veins. A solid wall of water came rushing down the narrowing hallway towards him and there was absolutely nothing to stop it from picking him up and throwing him around like a rag doll.

The tidal wave grew and grew and Naruto stood rooted in place from the terrifying display of raw power as the water came crushing into the giant room. A jolt of adrenaline rushed through him and released Naruto from his petrified state. "Son of a…" Naruto yelled and turned tail as his brain told him to run for his life. In his mad dash for safety, Naruto missed the fact that he had run passed the mangled cage bars and straight into the Kyuubi's domain.

The light was fading quickly around Naruto and he could already feel the first water sprays hit him and Naruto foolishly turned his head to look behind him as he continued running ever deeper into the Kyuubi's cage. However, Naruto was too slow and in his scramble for safety, he was seized by the torrent of water.

As the water took Naruto for a spin around his own axis, Naruto tore open his mouth to scream. But instead of his screams escaping, he had water defile him and rush down his throat and into his lungs. He coughed reflexively and it only added to his dilemma because he was now out of the last bit of remaining oxygen that had been hiding within his lungs. Holding the little breath he still had, Naruto desperately kicked the churning water and hoped to surface. Clawing at his throat as if that would help him gain precious oxygen, Naruto's eyes started rolling into the back of his head, when suddenly an explosion violently slammed through the water temporarily stopping all motion.

Naruto's eyes shot open as he felt a strong tug on his body and the water around him. He tumbled through the water again and managed to look below him and what he saw robbed the last shred of his hope. The darkness beneath him had opened up and an eerily red glow escaped from the torn ground. Naruto saw how the water was sucked down into this hellish red beneath him and took him right along for the ride. More desperate attempts of defeating the violent water and the gravity pull were made by him but Naruto only barely managed to stay in a single spot as he swam against the powerful energies of the maelstrom he was caught in. Yet even with Naruto's insane stamina, he was fighting a loosing battle because his last ditch effort for freedom had cost him the last precious oxygen that he had in his system.

His arms and legs stopped kicking and his body was instantly grabbed by the torrent of water as he went slack and dragged him down into the reddish abyss below him. And the last thing that Naruto could think of was that he had failed to protect everyone. The last image that flashed before him was of a crying Sakura and his only regret was that he had never told her how he truly felt about her.

He had already been dragged so far down that the murky water had taken on the hue of the reddish glow and as Naruto in his last conscious moment looked up into the dark abyss that once was the Kyuubi's room; he saw that he was in the center of a giant red maelstrom. _"Beautiful,"_ Naruto thought as his eyes fell close as the last breath of air left his lungs.

Naruto's eyes flashed open and he sucked in a heavy breath of air. He panted heavily as his chest heaved and pushed against the restraints. Confused of what had happened inside of his mind, Naruto found himself back in the dark room and he felt relatively fine. That is, if one were to disregard his aching chest as his body thought he was lacking oxygen. Naruto turned his head to the sides, hoping to make out anything that would tell him where he was and who this room belonged to but he was unlucky. There still hadn't been a single source of light that might have revealed the room's dark secrets.

Suddenly however, Naruto heard faint voices approach his position and he could only guess that someone was approaching his door. He strained his hearing as he waited patiently for the source of the voices to come closer.

"I am terribly sorry for giving you and your husband this much trouble. But thank you so much for letting us stay here. We'll be gone first thing in the morning." Sakura said and Naruto's heart lightened at hearing her magical voice.

"It's no problem child," a soft caring voice that was heavy with the wisdom of old age replied. "You and you're husband can stay as long as you want. At least re-think your decision, it is not safe to travel with a sick man."

"_Husband? Who is that woman talking about?"_ Naruto wondered but got his answer instantly.

"No, no, Naruto isn't my husband." Sakura stuttered and Naruto could hear that she was nervous, no embarrassed. "He is just… he is just a very special friend."

The old lady chuckled lightly, "I understand my dear. Well please think about my offer. You and your _friend_ may stay here as long as you wish."

"Thank you Obaasan."

Naruto didn't miss the emphasis the old lady used as she talked about him but he didn't understand the meaning behind it and Sakura didn't correct the woman, so he opted to ignore it. A small ray of light finally entered the dark room and Naruto turned his head to look as the door to his room silently open. He saw Sakura quietly slide into the room while holding a candle in one of her hands. And Naruto could only think at how beautiful she looked as the candle light danced in her delicate small hands that held at her beckon call unimaginable power. He loved how the tiny flame illuminated her beautiful face that held a small yet sad smile.

The light of the candle had not reached deep enough into the room to reveal him as being awake and he wanted to surprise her. Naruto didn't want to break the spell of her beauty and waited silently in the hopes for Sakura to step closer to his bed. He frowned when the room suddenly went pitch black again as Sakura blew out the candle. His mind fought with himself, telling him to say something but he wanted to wait a bit longer in hopes that the pinkette would still sit down next to him or at least check up on him before she went to sleep.

The room was deathly quiet as Naruto waited until he thought he heard Sakura sob. _"What is going on? Is Sakura-chan crying? Why?"_ His mind raced as he listened to her quiet sobbing and it weighted down his heart.

New resolve coursed through him and Naruto pushed against his restraints, hoping that he could break free this time but again was defeated. Deflated, he turned his head into the direction from which the sobbing came and he whispered in a soft caring voice, "Sakura-chan it's alright. I am finally awake, I am fine, and I am here for you. So please stop crying."

Naruto's own eyes started watering as he heard her sniff and in a pain stricken weak voice asked for his name as if she had imagined his voice. "Naruto, Naruto is that really you?"

"Yes, Sakura-chan. C-could you please release me from these restraints." Naruto pleaded wanting to jump out of his bed and embrace her in a protective manner.

Naruto heard Sakura shuffle towards him and shortly after he felt her hands testing their way about his body as she removed one restraint after another. "There all done now Naruto," Sakura whispered.

Naruto pushed himself out of the bed and pulled Sakura into a tight hug. He felt her stiffen in his arms only to melt shortly after, "Sakura-chan it's ok. Everything will be alright."

"Baka," Sakura muttered as she pushed her face into his neck and cried.

Naruto gently rubbed her back as he let her cry on his shoulder. He waited for her to calm down a little before he asked the first question that came to mind, "How long was I out?"

"Three weeks," Sakura replied as she kept her hold on him.

Naruto thought about that as he continued to run circles upon her back with his hand, "Damn that is long, even with the Kyu…" Naruto stopped mid sentence as he remembered the broken seal within him.

"What about the Kyuubi Naruto?" Sakura asked as she caught him from not finishing his sentence.

"Oh it's nothing Sakura-chan," Naruto chuckled uneasily. "Sakura-chan?"

"Yes?"

"Thanks."

"For what?" Sakura asked in surprise.

"For saving me," Naruto whispered. Naruto heard her mutter a weak you're welcome and the two just sat like this, Naruto holding her in his arms while her head rested on his shoulder.

"Naruto, do you know why Sasuke was there and why Tsunade didn't help you?" Sakura asked as she broke the silence in the dark room.

"I have no idea. I guess it was a fated meeting? I am not really sure what to think." Naruto admitted as he remembered the day he had almost died… again.

"Naruto, can you promise me something?"

"Anything Sakura-chan," Naruto happily voiced.

"Promise me that you will never betray me."

"O-of course Sakura-chan. I would never betray you. I-I lo… well you know," Naruto stumbled as he caught himself from confessing to her openly. _"Damn why is it so hard to be honest with her,"_ Naruto thought as he continued to run warm circles over Sakura's back.

Sakura smiled but Naruto couldn't tell due to the darkened room. _"Baka, I love you too."_ Sakura replied in her mind but said, "Thank you Naruto, you really are special. But Naruto, what now? What are we going to do?"

"What are you talking about Sakura-chan? We are going to return to Konoha and get Kakashi-sensei and than we will go rescue Baa-chan from Orochimaru."

Sakura sighed sadly as she remembered the words of the Root Anbu she had defeated, "Naruto we can't go back to Konoha. Danzo took control over the village and has declared you an outlaw, a criminal. Worst, he called you a demon and the entire village knows. He lied to the Council and the people, saying that you killed Tsunade-sama in cold blood and… and that you killed me as well. Naruto, they are going to hunt us down. Danzo's Root Anbu will hunt us down like animals. That man doesn't want us near Konoha. We are a threat to his plans."

"I would never hurt you or Baa-chan. I would never hurt a person from Konoha." Naruto strongly voiced his opinion. "I am sure we can clear all of this up when we get to Konoha Sakura-chan."

"Naruto you dimwit," Sakura got angry. "We can't go back. Didn't you listen? They know that you're the Kyuubi. Everyone back home knows and they will kill you on sight, if you show yourself. They believe that the Kyuubi controls you, they don't see you as a human anymore… if they even ever did." Sakura finished in a quiet whisper that Naruto picked up on.

"What? You really think so?" Naruto asked dumbfounded as he was unable to believe what Sakura was telling him about Danzo and the village

Sakura nodded. "Naruto, we have to go into hiding. We have to bide our time and wait. It's up to us that we protect Konoha. It's up to us to free Tsunade-sama. But before we can do that, we need to grow stronger and we need allies. Where can we hide from Konoha? I… I have no idea Naruto."

Naruto was quiet as he digested Sakura's information. "What about Suna? I am sure Gaara can protect us or at least give us shelter somewhere in the Country of Wind."

"We can't go to friends or places we have been before. Those will be the first areas the Anbu will check when they look for us. We have to go somewhere unknown, somewhere where even Konoha Anbu can't go freely."

"I have it," Naruto almost yelled as he remembered something from the history classes back from his Academy days. He turned his head slightly so he could whisper into her ear or hoped it was her ear, "We have to go to Iwagakure or near it at least."

"Naruto that's it," Sakura whispered in astonishment as she remembered the strained relationship between Konoha and Iwa. Her previous depression was gone in an instant. "You're a genius," Sakura said and planted a kiss on him. She blinked as she realized what she had done and pulled away, "S-sorry."

Naruto was more than just stunned, he was terrified because somehow he believed it was his fault and was expecting Sakura's fist any moment now. But when he heard her apologize, he was confused. "D-don't worry about it." Naruto mumbled as he blushed. _"Wow my first kiss from Sakura-chan. I will treasure this one forever."_

"Sakura-chan?"

"Yes," Sakura yelped in surprise as she was berating herself up to rear in her emotions and was startled by Naruto.

"There is something that has been bothering me," Naruto started and lowered his head. It was a ridiculous idea to show his discomfort by lowering his head because the room was still too dark for either of them to see each other. "How did you find us? I mean me. Where you following us? Didn't Baa-chan order you to stay behind in Konoha?"

"Naruto…" Sakura's voice was saddened. "How could I not follow you? I couldn't just let you get killed, you're special, you're important to me. I need you Naruto."

"I understand," Naruto voiced weakly. "You need me to get Sasuke back for you."

"_Damnit Naruto, you're __not listening,"_ Sakura screamed in her mind. She bit her lower lip as her hands cupped his face. She wanted to tell him how she truly felt about him but was afraid he would misunderstand. She turned his face towards her, "No Naruto that is not what I meant. I-I am sorry but… Why am I even apologizing?" Sakura chortled sadly. "I know Sasuke is like a brother to you but Naruto please stop going after him. He can't be saved from his madness and his quest for vengeance. He almost killed you twice now and I couldn't stand losing you."

"But…"

"Naruto no," Sakura interrupted. "I don't love Sasuke anymore. I don't care for him. I don't even have feelings for him, not even pity. Naruto, he betrayed us. Sasuke is no longer the friend we once knew. The Sasuke we knew died a long time ago and I finally accepted that."

Naruto blinked in confusion. "W-what are you talking about Sakura? Sasuke is important for you, you love him. Why are you saying these things now?"

"Not anymore I do Naruto," Sakura's voice cracked. "I haven't loved Sasuke in a long time. There is someone else that has taken Sasuke's place, someone that deserves my love more than Sasuke ever did."

"Sakura that's great," Naruto cheerfully voiced. Naruto heard her sob as her trembling hands still held his face. His own hands went up and pulled her hands away from his face and he held her tiny yet strong hands in his. He tried to placate her, "Sakura-chan what's wrong? Oh, you're sad because you're new boyfriend is back in Konoha right? I am sorry Sakura-chan. Because of me you can't go back to him."

Sakura sniffed, _"Naruto you're an idiot."_

"But you don't worry Sakura-chan, we will go into hiding and you can use one of my toads and send a message to him saying that you are alive and well." Naruto added trying to calm the pink haired kunoichi.

"That won't work Naruto. That idiot doesn't even know that I love him."

"What, you're pulling a Hinata on that guy? Why?"

"Naruto," Sakura was shocked. _"He can't be this clueless? Can he?"_ She wondered and decided to find out. "Naruto you do know that the one that Hinata loves is you, right?"

"WHAT? No way!" Naruto shouted and Sakura's hand quickly brushed up to cover his mouth.

"Shhh or you will wake everyone up."

"S-sorry. Hinata really loves me? But… but I like someone else." Naruto stammered. "Wait a minute," Naruto shouted again only to be shushed by Sakura once more. "You're not turning this around on me. Why don't you just tell the guy that you love him?"

"I can't, if I do, he might think poorly of me. He might think he is only a second best after Sasuke. No explaining in the world could change that thinking." Sakura sniffed again as fresh tears slowly rolled down her face.

Naruto puffed up. "If I were him," Naruto started not realizing that Sakura had become very quiet and was holding her breath. "If I were him, I wouldn't think twice about it and love you regardless." Naruto then laughed sheepishly, "But it's not me, so your only option is to tell him."

"Oh Naruto you idiot," Sakura cried and threw herself at him and pushed him down into the bed. "Thank you."

"Huh, what for?" Naruto asked bewildered.

"Don't worry about it right now, I'll tell you some other time. Just hold me in your arms." Sakura mumbled into his chest.

"S-sure," Naruto stuttered as he placed two shaking arms around Sakura's frame.

"Naruto, I am not made out of glass," Sakura added as she barely felt his arms on her. "You can hold me more tightly."

Naruto's face turned red in embarrassment and perverted thoughts ran rampant through his mind as he felt Sakura push herself higher onto him and into a more comfortable position. He tightened his hold on her and tried to help her in finding a comfortable spot on his chest, "B-better?"

"Yes, thank you Naruto. I just wish you were a bit smarter sometimes."

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Naruto yelled up and fell silent as Sakura's hand muffled his voice again. His rising anger though was quickly drained as Sakura started giggling and Naruto couldn't help but chuckle himself.

"Night Naruto," Sakura whispered as she closed her eyes with her head resting on top of him, while her ear listened to the drum of his steady heart beat.

"Night Sakura-chan," Naruto automatically answered. His closed eyes suddenly snapped open as he looked at the girl resting on top of him. "Um… Sakura-chan," He waited for her to answer but all he heard was her slow relaxed breathing. He sighed and blushed again. He closed his eyes and tried to find sleep as well already having forgotten what he was going to ask.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX****XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Naruto opened his eyes and he suddenly stood in an ancient forest of tall majestic trees. Compared to the trees, Naruto was the size of an insignificant ant and even in its terrifying awe, Naruto felt secure as he started wandering the forest. It was warm and the sun was strongly shining through the canopy high above him and illuminated the forest floor. He inhaled and the smell of wet moss and blooming flowers entered his nose. He instantly felt relaxed and at peace.

As he continued to walk through this ancient forest, he eventually found the trees thinning and being replaced by giant stalks of bamboo. Naruto stopped at the edge between the ancient forest and the bamboo forest and wondered if he should venture on. He looked around but didn't see anything else other than more massive trees and massive bamboo stalks that were a testament to the age of the forest. He leisurely shrugged with his shoulders and continued onward.

After a while of traveling and dodging one bamboo stalk after another, Naruto stumbled out into a clearing and was greeted by a large clear crystalline lake. There in the center, Naruto spied a small island with a single Sakura tree standing in the center. Summoning his chakra to his feet, Naruto began to cross the clear and calm waters of the lake as he felt a pull towards the tree.

He stepped onto the tiny island, his feet barely leaving traces on the fresh lush green grass that covered the island and he walked up to tree. As he stood beneath the majestic Sakura tree, he felt the urge to place a hand on the bark. He did and pulled his hand back unexpectedly as he felt a small electric spark travel from his palm to the tree. His eyes went wide in awe as the tree in front of him began to bloom a vibrant pink that reminded him of Sakura. He reached up to the tree and plucked a freshly bloomed blossom off one of the branches and put it up to his nose. He inhaled and smiled as he whispered, "It even smells like her." Laughing, he threw himself into the soft grass at the base of the tree and closed his eyes as he thought of the girl he loved.

He sighed happily and had his eyes closed, when he was interrupted by a cough. He looked to his side and was startled at seeing Sakura stand only a few meters away from him. "You can't be here," Naruto blurted out the first thing that came to mind. He cursed himself when he saw her face darken and turn into a scowl. "I am sorry Sakura-chan, it's just… I don't even know where here is and… What are you doing here?"

Sakura started laughing. First it was a happy laughter that encouraged birds to sing but it quickly turned to a sadder one, which eventually lead to a cold and dark mock. Confused, Naruto stood and walked over to her only to receive a punch to his gut. Loosing his breath, Naruto hunched over as he stumbled backwards. "Sakura-chan," he wheezed. "What are you doing? What did I do?"

Sakura laughed again and began to glow and shimmered strangely as her body contorted. Naruto saw her mouth open but it wasn't the sweet caring voice that was quick to anger, no it was the dark evil voice of the Kyuubi. **"Fool, you have always been such a pathetic little fool."**

The Kyuubi's voice turned darker and deeper as the Sakura that stood before him, transformed into the legendary Kyuubi no Kitsune, the giant demon fox that was known as the king of the demons. Naruto's eyes widened in horror and quickly fell into a defensive stance. His mind was racing a mile a minute as he tried to understand what was happening. He watched in terror how his perfect image of Sakura was suddenly tainted by the demon fox and he grew angry. "How dare you take her form asshole," Naruto growled.

Finishing his transformation, the Kyuubi towered over Naruto and snarled. **"I did not take that weak pathetic form of a human shell. You forced that miserable shell upon me after I broke free of that blasted seal. Humans are pathetic, they are weak, stink, and think that everything belongs to them. They are only good for one thing and that is breeding. They multiply faster than rabbits and taste even worst than a worm."**

"I did no such thing," Naruto yelled. "I would never tarnish Sakura by comparing her to you. She is an angel and not a filthy demon."

"**Silence you pitiful vermin,"** the Kyuubi growled and raised his upper lip in a sneer and show of force. **"I was as good as free. I could taste it but then this abominable shell was forced upon me. My body shrunk, my power waned, and I was loosing hold of my heritage. And after I was carrying that human skin as my own, everything went dark. Stuck in that wretched form I drifted in this darkness for days. I tried fighting my way out of that darkness, clawing as best as I could with those meaty appendages that you humans call fingers, but it was all for naught. And it wasn't until a moment ago that all of this,"** The Kyuubi looked up and around himself and Naruto. **"These forests, this lake, and that tree behind you… All of this became reality only a mere moment before you entered your mindscape again. And now Naruto, now I will kill you and escape from this cursed life of imprisonment. And when I do that pink haired bitch will be mine to enjoy in all of the sick and pleasurable fantasies one can think of."** The Kyuubi's evil chuckle echoed over the lake. And wind that shouldn't exist in Naruto's mindscape started whipping through the demon's fur, tossing it angrily in all directions.

"Never," Naruto growled as he summoned all of his chakra into a tiny blue sphere in his right palm. "I will never let you out, I will never let you harm anyone ever again, and especially not Sakura. You are nothing more than a has been, your place is beneath me. I was entrusted with keeping you contained, I am a Jinchuuriki. And even if I thought of this as a curse placed upon me by the Yondaime, it is much more. It is a blessing in disguise. Because of your power, I can achieve my dream and fulfill the Yondaime's final order. I will vanquish you and protect those that are close to me and ensure Konoha's survival."

The wind picked up and the soft breeze turned into a powerful gale. The crowns of the trees were swaying violently but none were breaking nor surrendering their precious leafs that they carried. The calm crystalline lake churned up waves after waves, which crashed against the shoreline that held the water contained but never damaging it. And the single Sakura tree in the center of the lake stood vigilantly against it all.

The wind howled and ripped through the gap between Naruto and the Kyuubi. The wind was then sucked in by the immense power of the force that was contained in Naruto's palm and eagerly responded to the Rasengan's beckoning call. As the power within the sphere grew, the wind grew exponentially with it and the howling of the wind turned violent.

The Kyuubi roared in glee at the display of energies in front of him. His blood was on fire as his eyes studied the tiny form that was his container. His gaze was fixed upon the tiny blue sphere and he could feel and taste the power it contained. The demon couldn't help but smile as he continued to watch Naruto summon ever greater power and the demon felt pride at seeing his container's strength. It was almost a shame that he had to snuff out his life but he wanted freedom. He opened his jaws, bearing his giant wide teeth and summoned forth his own terrible chakra as his nine tails swayed eagerly in the hurricane of wind that was drawn in upon the tiny blue sphere.

"**Your Rasengan will ****not be enough to defeat me boy!"** The Kyuubi roared and continued summoning all he could into his red sphere of chakra that formed in front of his mouth. **"Naruto, let's finish this in one decisive strike. Come at me with all that you have and I will do the same. You are the Jinchuriki of the legendary Nine-Tailed Demon Fox. Show me the strength that kept me trapped all these sixteen years."**

Naruto couldn't help but smile in return as he looked up to the giant fox before him. His eyes studied the red sphere of chakra and could feel the maliciousness and destructiveness ebb from it. _"Almost ready,"_ Naruto said in his mind as he willed more of his power into his Rasengan as ever before. Naruto concentrated and felt the last bit of his chakra enter the spinning blue sphere and his mind went blank as he looked down upon the Rasengan. It was pulsing as if it had a heart of its own from the power it contained and before he knew it; Naruto crushed the Rasengan between his two hands.

The Kyuubi watched a flicker of confusion within Naruto's eyes as the blonde's free hand moved over the powerful Rasengan that had even impressed the demon fox. _**"Not even the Yondaime could create one that powerful,"**_ the demon mused as he watched in interest Naruto destroy his own creation. Yet, what was strange was that the foreboding feeling of power that he had felt ever since Naruto had started summoning his chakra was not going away. The Kyuubi trained his red eyes upon the closed palms that had encased the blue sphere and the demon patiently waited as his own attack was idling in front of him awaiting its master's command to annihilate all that stood against him.

Naruto had closed his eyes not wanting to bare witness to his own destruction as his free hand moved without his control to encase the Rasengan. He knew that the Kyuubi would choose this instance to attack but strangely it never happened. Opening his eyes, Naruto looked up at the demon and saw him studying Naruto. A bit confused but thankful that the Kyuubi had seemed to have forgotten what they had intended to do, Naruto's gaze drifted down to his two hands as they sheltered the Rasengan. Naruto could still feel it spin and churn between his hands and was bewildered at realizing he had not destroyed his powerful Rasengan yet.

Sparks of power suddenly escaped through the tiny cracks between his fingers and the palms of his hands began to turn hot. The wind surrounding him and the demon had turned into a raging wall of destruction but wasn't actually damaging anything. Curious, Naruto studied the wall of wind and was surprised as the wind all but vanished. It was calm again, as if the storm clouds had never risen above him, as if the trees hadn't bent to the force of the wind, as if the water of the lake had never crashed upon the shore, and as if the wind had never existed in the first place. Serenity had returned to Naruto's new mindscape and he was as much astonished as was the Kyuubi. For Naruto heard a low rumble of confusion and displeasure come forth from the mighty demon. Something was going to happen and both knew it but neither understood what.

Naruto felt control over his left hand return and he carefully lifted it. His eyes fell upon a tiny blue vortex of chakra. Where once had been a perfectly round sphere was now the same sphere but with a maelstrom traveling down into the center of the globe of chakra. Naruto's eyes narrowed upon this creation and he tried to overlap an image of a normal Rasengan over this new type and found it to be roughly half the size of a regular Rasengan. His eyes traveled from his creation to the Kyuubi and he smiled, "Ready when you are Kyuubi."

The demon studied Naruto's latest creation and was pleasantly startled at the power that jutsu contained. Somehow Naruto had tripled the power of that powerful Rasengan that he had held only moments ago and the Kyuubi would never admit it but he was far more than just impressed. An overwhelming fear was creeping up his spine and for the second time in the demon's several thousand year long life, he was unsure of winning this fight.

"**Let us end this,"** the demon roared and charged at Naruto as he unleashed his devastating demon sphere.

Naruto sprinted forward and jumped into the air and thrust forth his right arm that held his latest creation. "Kachuu Rasengan," Naruto yelled as he named it.

The two attacks met and for a brief second everything seemed frozen in place. Naruto's view traveled over to the Kyuubi and their eyes met. A wordless spar of insults was shared between the two but neither admitted to what each had seen in the other's eyes. Their eyes held insecurity, indecision, and a hint of fear. Their attention was pulled back to their two attacks as crackles of lightning and thunder originated from the two spheres as they fought each other for dominance.

Both globes of power spun on their own axis and Naruto could have sworn that his spinning whirlpool was actually eating away on the Kyuubi's attack. Because Naruto thought that he had seen tiny red strands get sucked down into his blue vortex. Naruto's attack suddenly pulsed stronger and the whirlpool vanished in response. The Kachuu Rasengan turned a dark magenta before turning a brilliant white and Naruto closed his eyes expecting a powerful blinding explosion.

In an intense display of heat and power, Naruto's sphere blew off its first layer that kept its power contained and in a violent explosion engulfed Naruto and everything around him including the Kyuubi. The demon's roars of pain sounded through out the forest and after the dust and dirt settled from the explosion, one could see the mighty Kyuubi crumbled in a bloody heap with Naruto not looking any better and lying in front of the demon's jaws.

The Kyuubi's eyes shot open and swiveled around in its sockets looking for the blond and found him a couple meters in front of him lying on his stomach. Both were bleeding heavily from the wounds that they had sustained and the Kyuubi chuckled, **"Impressive attack boy. I have to hand it to you, that was quite a feat to use my own attack against me."** The Kyuubi pushed his mighty frame to stand on his paws and dragged himself closer to the Blond. **"But you have failed, I will devour you now."**

Naruto rolled over on his back and saw the red demon approach him and Naruto could only smile, "You look like shit Kyuubi. I am not afraid of you. I will just have to eat my way out of your stomach and kick your ass next time."

The demon grinned but instead of dropping his head to scoop up Naruto with his teeth, the Kyuubi came crashing down next to him. **"It is complete, there is no way back now."**

Naruto blinked and turned his head to find the Kyuubi's massive eye close enough for Naruto to raise his arm and lay a punch into it but Naruto refrained from doing so. "What are you talking about? Aren't you planning to escape and eat me?"

The demon chuckled as his eye fixed upon Naruto's face, **"I couldn't escape even if I wanted to. We have already merged and escaping would only mean the death of me. No Naruto, we are one now. My powers are yours and your powers are mine."**

"What? What do you mean we have merged? I don't want to become a demon or half-demon or whatever."

"**Relax Naruto. You will not become a demon. Only our powers have merged. You are still you and I am still me. The only difference is that now that we have started merging, you will be able to fully use my powers. Just like all Jinch****uurikis, you will eventually be able to transform into myself."**

"Does that mean I no longer loose myself in your rage and bloodlust? Does this mean that your chakra no longer damages me?"

"**It does and it means so much more."**

"Like what? Tell me!" Naruto demanded. "Do I still heal quickly after being injured?

"**Naruto, I do not know all of your answers. Only time will tell,"** the Kyuubi rumbled.

"What the hell… Why don't you know? You're a fucking… you know, a demon."

"**This is even a first for me Naruto. In all of my years, only you and your father ever defeated me and of the two only you survived. One thing I do know is that your offspring will benefit from our blending of powers."**

"My-my father? You knew my father? And what do you mean my offspring?" Naruto asked hectically.

"**All in due time,"** the Kyuubi grinned mischievously. **"I suggest you wake up now because there is someone terribly worried about you as we speak. And Naruto,"** the Kyuubi said as he watched the blond drift away.

"What?" Naruto asked before entirely vanishing.

"**Don't do anything I wouldn't do,"** the Kyuubi hissed in laughter at seeing Naruto's confused face before the blond vanished from his own mindscape. The Kyuubi sighed and dragged himself towards the Sakura tree and laid his head underneath the blossoms. The Kyuubi inhaled deeply and closed his eyes as he felt healing energies escape from the Sakura tree and drift over his massive frame. His body began to slowly heal and the Kyuubi muttered before drifting off to sleep. **"That female sure is a strong one and worthy of us Naruto. You have chosen well."**

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"Naruto," Sakura cried his name as she pushed her chakra into him. "Please don't die Naruto. Don't leave me."

Sakura suddenly found her hands encased by a pair of strong yet gentle hands and Naruto sat up and pulled her into his arms. "It's okay Sakura-chan, I would never leave you. Everything will be alright now."

"B-but your attacks," Sakura sniffed as her face was buried into his chest. "You've been having these attacks while you sleep and I don't know what the cause is. You might be dying and I don't know what to do. I feel so helpless Naruto."

"Shhh," Naruto whispered and gently rocked her. "Everything will be fine, I promise. I am healthy and will stay healthy. I will never leave you Sakura-chan. You can rely on my strength when you feel like your own doesn't suffice."

"But…" Sakura started.

"No Sakura-chan," Naruto interrupted her. "Trust me. Everything will be alright in the end. It is probably just the Kyuubi and that will soon end too."

"The Kyuubi? What about him?" Sakura asked in fear imagining the worst.

"He and I, we…" Naruto tried to find the best words to explain it without scaring her. "Um, I defeated him. He has submitted to me and no longer holds the power to escape the seal." Naruto knew it was a lie but in a way he was telling her the truth. "He will never be a danger to me or us ever again."

"U-us?" Sakura asked as she blushed from thinking about the meaning and implications behind that word.

"Yes us," Naruto repeated. "After all, we will be living in hiding for some time Sakura-chan."

"Oh, right."

"Say Sakura-chan, where are we?"

"We're in a border village to the Lightning Country. We traveled with a caravan to stay hidden from potential Anbu pursuit and this old woman with her husband helped me when they found out about your illness." Sakura paused thinking for a second. "Well I told everyone that you had fallen ill and they readily took me in. When we arrived here the old woman told me that we could stay in their guest room and we have been here for about two days now."

"I see," Naruto responded and thought. "Is there a way from us to reach Earth Country without having to cross close to Fire Country?"

"Yes there is," Sakura said. "We would have to travel north for a while but eventually there is a port city that should be able to take us to Earth Country without too many problems."

"I think it is best that we leave then, don't you agree."

"Hai, I don't want to cause any more problems for this old woman than I already did." Sakura said and yawned. She slipped out of Naruto's arms and lay down on the bed. She rolled onto her left side and looked up at where Naruto would be sitting. She heard him lay down next to her and a soft genuine smile crossed her lips. "Naruto…"

"Yes Sakura-chan?"

"I-I love you," she said in embarrassment and leaned in to capture Naruto's lips with hers. The kiss ended quickly and Sakura edged closer towards him. She laid one of her arms over his chest and snuggled into his sides. "G-good night Naruto… kun."

Stunned, Naruto barely registered the kiss. A single tear escaped his eyes at hearing Sakura use for the first time an honorific with his name. A truly happy smile split his face and he leaned over to place a soft kiss on her forehead. She mumbled something that he couldn't understand and he sweat dropped at the speed she had fallen asleep.

"Good night Sakura-chan, I love you too." Naruto whispered and closed his eyes missing a knowing smile that appeared on Sakura's face as both young Leaf shinobi fell asleep.

* * *

Translation:

**Kachuu Rasengan** – Vortex Rasengan


	4. Leaving on Vacation More Info inside!

Ahoy fellow fans,

I thought I'd let you all know that I am well and that I didn't forget about you or my stories. They are not abandoned, I will continue them. I've been terribly busy with work and when home I either too tired to sit down and write or so busy with other things that I can't even boot up my PC.

To inform you all, my story **Gone** is currently sitting at 5k words and **Furinkazan** at a similar word count. But both aren't publishable, so I am sorry but you have to wait a little longer.

I am leaving for Greece tomorrow. I'll be gone for 1 week, in which I hope to relax enough to have the energy to start writing again after work days. To keep you all happy, I'll uploaded the first chapter to a time travel fic that I have started writing months ago. It's pretty much publishable; a few errors might still be contained in the chapter, so excuse those slip-ups.

Anyways, until I get back from my vacation.


	5. A new Beginning

**F****ū****rinkazan**

Chapter – 4

"A new Beginning"

Danzo was sitting in the Hokage's office and was secretly smiling. He had finally reached the goal he had set himself when he was an Academy student, and now only world conquest was left on his list of dreams to achieve. However, at the same time as he relished in his victorious coup d'état, he was worried. Words had reached him from his Root agents that Sunagakure's Kazekage had arrived with a fully armed platoon of his elite guard but the Sand Leader had yet to come greet him.

A constant stream of updates had arrived on Danzo's desk, news of the so called Konoha-Eleven remnants meeting at the Nara residence alongside the Kazekage and his siblings was nothing new to him. And even though Danzo was interested in finding out about the details of the meeting, he knew his chance to gain information would show itself sooner or later. Danzo's plans after all hinged on Suna's support in his quest to dominate the lesser shinobi countries and before he would set his greedy eyes upon the stronger nations of Kumo, Kiri, and Iwagakure, Danzo would demand answers about the details of the Konoha-Eleven meeting or meetings if more would ever occur in the future.

A knock at his door brought him out of his thoughts as Shizune stuck her head inside the Hokage's office that had now become Danzo's own. "Excuse me Danzo-sama but the Kazekage is here to see you."

"_Finally," _Danzo thought and nodded before standing up from his chair. His healthy eye was trained on the wooden door as it widened and the young Kazekage stepped through with his older sister only a few steps behind him.

"Welcome Kazekage-dono," Danzo said in a warm welcoming voice. "I was beginning to worry that you wouldn't ever come to see me. First, let me apologize for the chaos that Konoha has caused not only to Suna but every other major shinobi village. With the untimely death of the Godaime Hokage, it had been some tiring few weeks for us. Now, how may I help you today?"

Gaara nodded and took a seat, "My own apologies for arriving this late. I wanted to come here to reassure you that the Alliance between Konoha and Suna still holds true. My village and I send our deepest regrets for your loss. The Godaime Hokage and her apprentice Haruno Sakura will surely be missed. Especially the loss of the Haruno woman was felt deeply within the hearts of my people and if I may say so, even I will miss her. Haruno was an excellent medic with skills far beyond her young age. If it hadn't been for her, my brother as well as I would have never survived Akatsuki's attack on Suna."

In his mind Danzo smiled but otherwise kept his emotions in check. He dipped his head in a show of gratitude while accepting the Kazekage's words. "I, as well as Konoha, are glad to hear these words coming from our strong Ally of the Sand and are overjoyed that you wish to continue our Alliance. It must have been difficult for you, considering how close you were with our Jinchuuriki. I just wish Uzumaki would have been more like you, fighting to protect their village, striving to become Hokage and not murder and betray us like he did to the Godaime. Now, if you don't mind my asking, what were you and your entourage doing at the Nara residence all day today?"

Gaara raised an eyebrow but sighed in a fake show of surrender, "I was planning to discuss this with the Tsunade-sama but seeing as you are the Leader of Konoha now, I had planned on strengthening our ties with Konoha by offering the hand of my sister to the Nara heir."

"WHAT?" Temari suddenly yelled and stared at Gaara in utter disbelief. "You did what?"

Danzo chuckled, "I see you forgot to mention that fact to your own sister. Might I ask how the negotiations have fared?"

"They were a complete success. My sister Temari will be marrying Nara Shikamaru in three months time."

"My congratulations are in order then," Danzo replied politically and walked around his desk and offered Gaara his hand in a friendly gesture.

"Thank you," Gaara said and shook hands. "Now if you would excuse us, I believe I owe my sister an explanation as well as make sure she understands the importance behind this union."

"Of course," Danzo said almost gleaming of joy. _"I can't believe this, the Kazekage's daughter marrying into the Nara clan. It couldn't go any better for me. This will strengthen the bond between Suna and Konoha even deeper and if by chance Suna doesn't want to follow my lead, I can always threaten them with Temari's execution."_

He watched the Kazekage along with his older sister leave his office and he returned to his seat. He snipped with his fingers and as one of his loyal Anbu drones appeared; a predatory smile split Danzo's face in half. "Follow them but stay at a distance. Inform me of the woman's reaction. I want to make sure that this isn't some ploy to get a spy into our ranks."

"Yes sir," the Root Anbu snapped and vanished again.

"Shizune," Danzo roared and waited for the woman to enter his office.

"Yes Danzo-sama?" Shizune asked as she walked through the door. "How can I help you?"

"We have a wedding to plan," Danzo said gleefully. "I trust I can count on you to ensure that the proper officials will be invited."

"Yes sir," Shizune replied and made to leave but stopped before exiting the room. "If I might be so bolt, but who is getting married?"

"Shikamaru Nara will marry Temari of the Sand."

Shizune's eyes widened in surprise and she nodded, "You can count on me Danzo-sama."

"Thank you. Now leave me, I feel exhausted."

"As you wish," Shizune said and closed the doors behind her. _"Great he bought it,"_ Shizune thought happily and returned to her desk to create a list of guests that she could present to Danzo. _"I just hope Temari is going to play along as well."_

"Gaara I can't believe that you would force me to do this," Temari yelled at her youngest brother the minute they entered the Suma Embassy in Konoha. "What the hell are you thinking? Who put you up to this? It's those damn Elders; this is their doing!"

Gaara calmly watched his sister storm around the room yelling and cussing. He waited for her to calm down before deciding to speak, "I don't know what your problem is. Don't you like each other?"

Temari stopped dead in her rampaging and stared at her brother as if he had grown a second head. Her face turned red in anger as she unleashed another barrage of insults, "Of course I like him but this is marriage. M-A-R-R-I-A-G-E! Does that word compute with you? Do you even know the importance behind such an act? It's something special and…"Temari breathed heavily. "And it's supposed to be my special moment."

"So?" Gaara questioned. "You like the Nara boy and he likes you. You can still have your special day; it's just earlier than you might have planned it."

"And what about love," Temari yelled in question.

"What about it? Just learn to love each other," Gaara suggested. "And if that doesn't help you in convincing, think of it as an opportunity to spy on the Leaf for us. We need to know what Danzo is planning. I don't trust that man and I fear that if the man stays in power for too long, it could mean the end for Suna. You can also help with everything that we discussed at the Nara compound earlier. You don't believe this lie about Naruto killing Haruno and Tsunade either, so use this chance to do some digging."

"I-I," Temari stammered in anger before storming out of the room without saying another word.

"Troublesome," Gaara muttered and dropped his sand gourd to relax his shoulders before taking a seat in one of the armchairs to close his eyes.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX****XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

The sun shone through the curtain less window and tickled the sleeping faces of Naruto and Sakura. A groan escaped Naruto's lips, which was promptly followed by Sakura's own, as her face twisted away from the disturbing sun rays. Sakura rolled over and pressed her face into Naruto's sides and a content sigh escaped her as the teasing sun no longer annoyed her sleeping eyes.

Naruto, however, was less lucky as his eyes moved rapidly behind his closed eye lids in an attempt to escape the punishing brightness. His arm moved up to block out the waking sun and a soft, _'damn'_ escaped his lips. He felt Sakura's presence next to him stir and Naruto couldn't help but be ecstatic.

Sakura shifted and stretched and a single jade green eye peaked out from Naruto's side. "Good Morning Naruto. Did you sleep well?"

Naruto's face split in half as he flashed a happy grin, "Good Morning Sakura-chan. And yes, I slept like a rock, how about you?"

Sakura sighed and rolled onto her back. "It wasn't that bad. I had a nightmare or two," Sakura mumbled and closed her eyes again and inched a little closer to Naruto. She remembered her nightmare well, even though she tried to forget about it. "I'm still exhausted and tired. I don't really feel rested."

"Was it a very bad dream Sakura-chan?" Naruto asked in concern. He waited a few seconds for her to answer but when he didn't receive one, he decided to steer away from the topic, "You know you can go back to sleep. I'll watch over you in the meantime."

"That's not a bad idea Naruto," Sakura said while yawning. She rolled onto her sides and away from Naruto as she used her hands as a pillow support. Her back was facing him now and she quietly mumbled, "Thanks."

Naruto watched in fascination how Sakura's back rose and fell with every breath she took. He heard Sakura quietly humming and after several minutes, Naruto softly asked her. "Sakura-chan what are we going to do now?"

Sakura's humming stopped and the pinkette turned her head to look over her shoulders. A small frown crossed her forehead as she looked into a concerned and confused face. She pushed herself up from the bed and fully turned towards Naruto. She folded her legs beneath her frame and took one of Naruto's hands into her own, "Naruto what did I tell you last night?"

"Well," Naruto started and looked away from her, too afraid to make eye contact. "You said that we couldn't go back to Konoha."

"Naruto look at me," Sakura asked him and when he finally did she smiled softly. "And what else?"

Naruto inhaled sharply before continuing. "That Konoha thinks that I killed you and Baa-chan. That they believe that I am the Kyuubi and that we are most likely being hunted down by Danzo's Root Anbu, if not by the entire Leaf forces."

"That's right," Sakura said and gently caressed the back of Naruto's hand with her thumb. "Do you remember what else we spoke about? How we decided to go into hiding for the time being and wait this out?"

Naruto nodded, "But what about your friends, your family? What about Baa-chan? You know that I didn't kill her, so she must still be alive somewhere. We should search for her!"

"Naruto if Tsunade-shishou is still alive, I am sure Danzo is frantically searching for her and ensure she would never return to Konoha. He is the Hokage now and I hate to tell you this but Danzo… Danzo is an evil man. He has tried to undermine Tsunade-sama countless of times and even asked for your imprisonment. Naruto we can't go looking for Tsunade-sama, at least not yet. I know this hurts Naruto, I know that she was like a mother to you. I feel the same way but please trust me."

"Sakura-chan," Naruto called her name softly as he pulled her into his lap as she started crying. "I am sorry. I was careless to think that only I cared for Baa-chan. I promise you that I will never leave you. I promise you that we will go into hiding for a few months and…"

"Years," Sakura mumbled as she fisted his shirt as her entire body trembled from crying.

"Excuse me?" Naruto asked in astonishment.

"Years Naruto," Sakura replied a bit more strongly. Her eyes peaked through the locks of her hair as she looked at him with puffy eyes, "We have to hide for years if not even longer Naruto. We… we might never be able to return to Konoha."

Stunned, Naruto just looked at Sakura as complete realization finally dawned on him. Sakura's face had returned to her previous position as she cried into his chest letting out all her anger, frustration, and sadness. And in between sobs she apologized a countless times, "I am sorry Naruto. Because of me you can no longer become Hokage. I was too weak to help you in bringing Sasuke back. I made your life miserable for so long that I didn't even realize that I was hurting you. Naruto I am so sorry."

Naruto's arms snaked around Sakura's waist and he pressed her body against his. "Look at me Sakura-chan," he told her through his own watery eyes. And when she looked up, he lowered his face and their lips connected. He gently pushed his body forward while his arms supported her frame as she slowly sank beneath him.

Seconds later, Sakura found herself lying on her back and her lips were still sealed tightly with his. And when they finally parted, she looked up at his serene face. She opened her mouth to speak but found Naruto's index finger on top of her lips. "I know Sakura-chan and I will never leave you, even if we can never return to Konoha."

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX****XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"Ah good morning Sakura," the elderly woman said joyfully as Sakura entered the kitchen. "Did you sleep well? How is that special friend of yours today? I hope he gets better soon. Are there any improvements in his health?"

Sakura smiled warmly at the quick questions and answered, "Good Morning Kiyoki-sama. Considering the situation, I didn't sleep that bad. And yes, Naruto is finally better. In fact," Sakura turned around and opened the kitchen door. "Naruto come inside and say hello."

Naruto entered grinning and wore the set of clothes Sakura had bought him all those days ago when she had taken shelter with his sick self in the ancient burial mount. "Good morning Baa-san! Thank you very much for letting us stay here and thank you for your hospitality."

"Naruto," Sakura said sternly. "Show a little respect please. It's not polite."

The elderly woman chuckled and waved her off. "Sakura my dear, there is no need for such formalities. I am glad to see you up and walking around young man. You really had us and especially Sakura here extremely worried. But do you think it is wise for you to leave the bed already? You seemed terribly ill."

Naruto scratched his head in embarrassment and chuckled, "It is okay. I heal quite fast and Sakura-chan gave me a clean bill of health after we woke up this morning."

"Oh is that so?" The old woman asked in amused interest and studied Sakura while sporting a hint of a tiny smirk before winking at her.

Sakura realized that she had become the focus of the old lady's attention and her defensive nature came online as she understood the underlying meaning behind such an innocent remark. Hoping to keep her anger under control at such innuendos, Sakura tried to answer as nonchalantly as possible. "It's true, the Baka heals rather quickly."

Naruto stood next to Sakura and continued to grin as if he was entirely oblivious of Sakura's sudden tension. In truth though, Naruto was shocked beyond his wildest dreams at seeing Sakura calm and in control of her wild yet delicate emotions. He had expected her to explode in a fit of humiliated anger and deny everything.

The old woman laughed heartily, "I see… So, I imagine the two of you want to continue your journey as soon as possible?"

"Obaa-san," Naruto said but was interrupted before he could continue by a raised hand that told him to stop.

"Young man I believe it is best that I know nothing. I don't understand where or from whom you two are running from, but just make sure that you two stay together and look out for each other. I wish you the best of luck and I hope you will get a chance to find some peace and happiness in your life. Now if you two plan to leave, may I suggest you sit down and have a quick breakfast? A traveling circus is in town and is scheduled to leave today, if you're lucky, you might be able to travel with them. I'll tell my husband to contact the circus owner; they know each other quite well."

Sakura could tell that any objection on their part would meet deaf ears, so she stopped Naruto with a gentle squeeze of his hand before he could respond. "Thank you," Sakura said and bowed in respect. "For everything you and your husband did for us."

"But Sakura-chan," Naruto pleaded with her quietly.

Sakura looked at Naruto's pleading face and she briefly closed her eyes to gather her thoughts before opening them again. With a saddened voice, Sakura whispered to him while leading him to the large kitchen table. "Naruto let it go. They have been kind enough to help us. Let's not cause them any more trouble. We need to stay on the move regardless. Remember, we are being hunted."

"I guess you're right," Naruto responded in a whisper.

Sakura squeezed his hand tighter, too afraid to let go of him. "I need you Naruto, we need each other. I, we, it wasn't supposed to be like this. Why do we have to run and flee from our homes? Why, why does it always come down to us fighting for our lives?" Sakura asked him in agitation and sorrow before continuing, "Sometimes I wonder if faith and destiny are toying with us. Perhaps we are destined to be at the center of this story and well… I am scared Naruto, afraid to lose the one thing that has always been a fixed constant in my life, afraid to lose that reliability, knowing that you are always there for me, afraid to lose you."

"Shhh Sakura," Naruto said and he freed his hand from her grip and placed his arm around her. He offered her a warm and genuine smile and hoped it would give her the security she needed. "I'll understand. I don't know where we'll end up or how we're going to survive. But I promise you that I will never leave you, I will always protect you, and I will clear your name so that you can return home someday."

"Together," Sakura interrupted as she was moved by his words. She wiped away a tear that was threatening to escape her eyes again and she looked into his loving deep blue eyes as she remembered their intimate moments they had shared this morning and she smiled lovingly as she unexpectedly blurted out, "I love you Naruto-kun."

Naruto started laughing out loud the minute Sakura's face had taken on a shocked expression upon realizing that she had shouted her confession loud enough for the old woman to hear. "I love you too," Naruto replied and his right hand moved behind her head and with a little nudge, she leaned closer to him and both met in the middle for a very short but passionate kiss. When they separated, Naruto breathed onto her lips, "Yes together Sakura-chan, we'll return home together."

"Oh to be young again and in love," the old woman mused as she fussed over the cooking stove.

Sakura giggled but stopped when she realized that Naruto was sporting a frown and was lost in his thoughts. She nudged him carefully and leaned closer, "Naruto what's wrong? What are you thinking about?"

Naruto jerked up at the point of contact. He blinked several times and his eyes focused on Sakura's concerned face. "Sorry," he muttered and offered a weak smile.

"Don't be," Sakura said and waited. But when she realized he wouldn't elaborate, she asked him again. "What has you so worried Naruto-kun?"

"It's nothing Sakura-chan."

"Naruto," Sakura said his name lazed with a hint of a threatening growl.

Naruto chuckled nervously, "I was only trying to think of a way for us to travel. We need fake documents and a solid story in case we get stopped by officials."

Sakura nodded, "Okay I understand but isn't it quite expensive to buy fake documents that will hold up against your so called officials?" Sakura asked and added in a tiny whisper, "We are talking about shinobi patrols right?"

"Yes that's right," Naruto answered both questions and gave Sakura a look that she had guessed correctly.

"Pardon my intrusion," the old lady said as she placed several plates of food onto the kitchen table. "My husband and I can't help you in obtaining the necessary documents that allow you to travel freely, but as a cover story, why don't you two pretend that you are traveling to one of your grandparents?"

"That won't work," Naruto immediately shot down the idea. "But thanks, it actually isn't a bad idea but it just wouldn't work."

"We'll manage somehow," Sakura interjected confidently.

"But…" Naruto started only to be interrupted by the old lady.

"I am sure you will. Now eat up and regain your strengths. If you plan to catch the circus and use it as a cover to get away from this small village, I imagine that you are slowly running out of time."

"Right," Sakura agreed optimistically. "Naruto let's eat and we can discuss our plans some more while we pack upstairs in the room, like how to obtain fake traveling documents."

"Eh," Naruto started as he shoved a fork of scrambled eggs into his mouth. "I am so stupid. I already know how we can get our hands on some documents. There is a contact from Ero-sennin that we can meet up with. I only just remembered," Naruto quickly added as he saw Sakura's confused but curious expression.

"Really? That's wonderful," Sakura exclaimed and turned to her food. "Who knew that the old pervert was good for anything?"

Naruto let out a sad chuckle, "Yeah he sure had a few tricks up his sleeve."

Sakura stopped and she turned to him. Her eyes were watery as she remembered that Jiraiya had only died days before this entire mess had started. "Oh Naruto I am so sorry. I didn't mean…"

Naruto smiled, "It's okay Sakura-chan. I bet Jiraiya is sitting up in heaven right now drunk off his ass and surrounded by beautiful women."

Sakura's brow twitched slightly but she smiled as well and giggled, "Yeah that would be like him wouldn't it."

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX****XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"How do I look?" Naruto asked Sakura as he stood in their small little room they were given by the old couple. He was wearing dark brown baggy pants with one extra large pocket on each thigh, a dark green shirt, and a pair of civilian sandals.

Sakura turned away from the bed where she was currently placing the few items they still possessed into a small bag. The items consisted mostly of medical supplies that wouldn't draw attention, some spare clothes, the little money that was left, and a lone uninteresting looking book that Sakura had been reading. However, stored between the pages of the book, Naruto and Sakura had sealed away their ninja gear.

"Relax your shoulders a little," Sakura said as she studied him. "Good, now you look like a civilian. And how do I look?"

"Normal," Naruto answered and grinned.

Yet his grin quickly vanished when Sakura growled, "Normal? What do you mean by just normal?"

"Eh," Naruto started with eyes wide already imagining the pain of getting clobbered over the head by her. "I mean you look as beautiful as always and…" His eyes darted up and down Sakura's frame, "And you look very feminine in that outfit, just like a beautiful flower that has blossomed into a fine young woman."

"I," Sakura stammered and turned away from him to hide her blush. She answered smugly but wasn't serious, "Well good save Naruto." Her hands went back into the bag and she pulled out the book and flipped through the pages.

"Do you think this will work? I mean hiding the seals as page numbers was brilliant but a skilled shinobi might be able to tell that a few of these numbers are in reality simple storage seals."

"They'd have to be as good as Ero-sennin to see the difference," Naruto replied confidently and took the book out of Sakura's hands. "He himself invented these seals. We will be fine Sakura-chan. Your special medical supplies and our weapons will be safely sealed away and our hitai-ate are behind a double layered storage and blood seal, only you and I can release that one. And don't forget about the failsafe I put in place. If someone were to try and release the seals without us first disarming the seal on the back of the book cover, all items would be destroyed."

"But what if they bring the book to a seal master?" Sakura looked at Naruto in concern. "What if they disable that seal?"

"Don't worry," Naruto said in an attempt to placate Sakura's uneasiness. "I learned this failsafe from the Toads. Akamichi showed it to me once and told me that only someone who signed the contract with the toads can create this seal and disarm it. And remember how I asked you to add some of your chakra into the seal?"

Sakura nodded, "That was to allow you access to the seals inside the book. And adding someone who doesn't have a signed contract with the toads into the seal array can only be done during the creation process of the seal. In other words, you and I are the only ones that can seal and unseal items within this book and I am unable to add another person to the seal array."

"So it's like a vault that has no keys and locks and the door only opens for the two of us?"

"Right," Naruto replied and grinned. "Pretty cool ne?"

"It's definitely handy," Sakura agreed as she took the book out of Naruto's hands and caressed the cover gently before placing it back into their little traveling bag that they had been given by the old lady. She exhaled heavily and closed the bag. She hefted it onto her back and turned around to look at Naruto.

"Are you ready?" She asked him.

"Yeah let's get going. I already sent a toad to Jiraiya's contact with instructions to prepare the necessary documents. All we need to tell the contact is where to meet us and when." Naruto replied and hesitantly took Sakura's hand into his own and led her towards the door.

Both walked down the stairs and were greeted by the old woman who was waiting patiently alongside her husband and a second man. The old lady smiled warmly as she watched Naruto and Sakura come walking down the stairs.

"So it's good bye then," she said and pulled both into a bone crushing hug. "Now you two be careful and watch out for each other. I wish I knew what kind of trouble you two are fleeing from but it is best I don't. Here, I packed a quick lunch for you and here is some money to help you. It's not much but at least it is something," the granny said and pushed a small package into Naruto's hands.

"Obaa-san," Naruto quivered as he was overcome with emotions. "We can't take your money…"

"Ah nonsense," the old woman replied. "Don't worry about it too much. It's not our life savings. My husband and I will do just fine without that little amount."

"Thank you," Sakura bowed in respect and humiliation and took the small package out of Naruto's hands. "We'll promise to return the money to you as soon as possible."

"It's quite alright my dear, just promise that the two of you watch out for each other and will be there to comfort one another. Stay safe and stay healthy."

"It's a promise," Naruto shouted optimistically and grinned.

"Naruto, Sakura, I'd like you two to meet this man," the old husband said and directed their attention to the third adult in the hallway. "This here is Mr. Yakashima and he is the circus director and an old friend that we have told you about. I spoke to him and he is delighted to welcome you amongst his circus and give you a chance to escape."

"Thank you for your help Mr. Yakashima," Naruto and Sakura said and bowed in respect as they faced the circus director.

"Don't mention it," the director answered in a high pitched tone that was similar to having inhaled too much helium. He turned towards the elderly couple, "Good bye and as always thank you very much for letting me use your fields to setup my circus. Without your generosity, I think I wouldn't have come back to this village after they had raised the rent for their public staging area to such tremendous prices."

"Like always, it was our pleasure to host your circus this year. I wish you the best of luck and hope to see you again next year. And thank you for helping these two scatter their tracks." The husband of the old lady said and shook hands with Mr. Yakashima.

"Don't mention it old friend," Yakashima replied and looked at Naruto and Sakura. "Now if you would follow me, my people are waiting outside the village and are anxious to get moving. Kumo is the most profitable stop on our tour and we wish to spend as much time as possible in that village. I hope that won't be a problem for the two of you?"

"No it won't be at all," Naruto lied and covertly squeezed Sakura's hand. "We don't know Kumo and are eager to see what a ninja village looks like."

"Well then you are in for a treat. I think Kumo is by far the most beautiful ninja village and they have very competent shinobi. And unlike certain other villages, Kumo follows the orders of their client to the letter." Mr. Yakashima responded and opened the door that lead to the streets.

Naruto was curious of the circus director and wanted to ask him more questions about Kumo and why the man seemed to be favoring that specific village, but didn't get the chance as Sakura was saying her good byes' to the elderly couple. Naruto quickly joined Sakura and added his own. "Good bye and many thanks for your help and hospitality. We'll never forget you and we promise that we'll return the money to you. It's a promise of a lifetime."

The elderly couple chuckled and said their own farewells and again wished them their best of luck. "No matter how dark life seems at this moment, there is always a light at the end of the tunnel. As long as you stay together and support one another, peace will come to you. Good luck and we hope to see you again someday."

"Thank you, we will," Sakura said again and gave the couple another fast hug. She grabbed Naruto's hand and pulled him after her, "Let's go Naruto. Mister Yakashima is already waiting for us down the road."

They quickly caught up with Mr. Yakashima and followed him down the road and out of the village. "My people are already waiting for us outside of town. Let us hurry and don't worry about officials stopping us," the director explained while they walked. "My circus is well known in this region; hence we don't get pestered by patrols. If you don't mind my asking but where are you from and why are you on the run?"

"Well," Naruto started and scratched the back of his head in uneasiness. "I don't really understand the reason myself yet. I was very ill up until today and hardly ever conscious. I believe it's best if Sakura-chan would explain."

The circus director nodded and turned his attention towards Sakura, "Well young lady, would you be so kind and offer me an explanation?"

"Um… I… I honestly don't think…" Sakura started only to be interrupted by the director as the man stopped and turned to study Sakura.

"Now pay attention you two," the man started roughly. "I personally don't care about the reason behind you two needing to get away but when it comes to my business and my people, I need to know what kind of dangers they will be exposed to. Either you will tell me everything or I am sorry but I cannot allow you to travel with us. So what will it be?"

Sakura looked at Naruto in the hopes of finding an answer but she was disappointed when Naruto looked as clueless as Sakura. She wasn't certain whether they should explain their situation to the circus director or not. She grabbed Naruto's left hand and intertwined her fingers with his before squeezing them to find reassurance which Naruto quickly offered by returning her affection. She sighed and looked into the eyes of the director, "Thank you for your offer to help us Mr. Yakashima but we cannot tell. You have to understand that this isn't easy for us, for our safety as is for yours. If these are your conditions then we will have to part ways now. Thank you once again and I am sorry that we asked of you to blindly trust us."

"Very well," Mr. Yakashima responded as he rubbed his chin. "I respect your honesty but I am not going to change my mind. I am sorry as well and I wish you the best of luck. Good day."

"See ya," Naruto said and both he and Sakura watched the circus director walk away from them.

Naruto pulled Sakura into his arms and hugged her. "Don't worry Sakura-chan," he whispered into her hair as she had pushed her face into his chest. "We'll manage somehow. C'mon let's stick to the roads and head North towards Kumo. No one will suspect two young adults walking in bright daylight and traveling the open road."

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX****XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

The sun had set hours ago and Naruto and Sakura had finally gotten closer to the borders of Lightning country. The wind had picked up as the night cooled and distant thunder announced the coming of a storm. And when it seemed to rain down upon them, they found a small Inn sitting quietly at the side of the road they were walking on and decided to seek shelter for the night.

"Let's see if they have a spare room Sakura-chan," Naruto suggested to his partner.

"Okay," Sakura answered softly as her right hand searched for Naruto's left. "I wouldn't mind sleeping in a bed, especially since it's about to start raining."

Naruto nodded and both quickened their steps until they reached the Inn. Upon closer inspection, Naruto immediately realized what kind of establishment they had found. He sighed and stopped forcing Sakura to halt as well.

"Naruto what's wrong?" She asked when he suddenly stopped.

He looked at her in defeat, "I don't think we want to spend the night here. C'mon let's keep walking until we find somewhere where we could pitch up our tents."

"What? No," Sakura answered irritated. "Why shouldn't we stay here?"

"You see this mark here," Naruto pointed at a small symbol that looked like a regular horizontal notch on top of the door frame. "It looks like the wood simply splintered along its seam for about five centimeters doesn't it?"

Sakura peered at the door frame and saw the small horizontal slash, "Yeah it does, but what about it Naruto?"

"And look here," Naruto pointed to the bottom of the right frame post. "What do you see there?"

"Looks like the number eight but lying on its side," Sakura muttered and frowned. She looked into Naruto's face in question. "Okay you got me, what is it?"

"Ero-sennin taught me to look out for those signs," Naruto said and pointed at the short slash above the door frame. "This one means that missing-nin are welcomed and this eight," Naruto pointed to the bottom of the frame post. "Is in reality a mathematical symbol that stands for infinity and tells every missing-nin that affiliations don't matter. In other words, this is a safe haven for every nuke-nin, no matter which village he is from."

"I see," Sakura replied in thought. "But why did we stop Naruto? This would only mean that we can spend the night here without too much worry… right?"

"Wrong," Naruto answered and looked troubled. "Even though this building claims to be neutral territory, only the worst bunch frequent these places and none of them are pushovers. To give you an idea, shinobi like Zabuza or Itachi would use these safe houses."

"I don't understand," Sakura said. "Why wouldn't this place be crawling with Hunter-nin then?"

"It's quite simple," Naruto explained. "Combined, these nuke-nin are too powerful for the Hunter-nin but I bet a few are hanging around studying the people coming and leaving. So let's just keep walking, I am sure we can find a suitable spot to rest soon."

"No," Sakura answered as she shook her head. "I don't understand why you don't want to spend the night here? We are strong enough to deal with these guys Naruto. I killed Sasori and you took care of Kakuzu, we'll be fine."

"But Sakura-chan these aren't just shinobi that have abandoned their village," Naruto continued. "The majority of these shinobi have lost all forms of honor. The moment we enter, their undivided attention will be upon us. They would surely try and start a fight just to gauge our skills and I wouldn't even be surprised that some might even try and rape you."

Sakura looked at Naruto in surprise. The corners of her lips raised into a tiny smile, "A-are you worried about me Naruto-kun? I think you're worried about me. That's so sweet of you." Sakura said playfully and stepped closer to him. "Come here you," She hushed and caught his lips with her own. "Thank you Naruto but I am sure we can manage. Trust me?"

"Okay, if you wish," Naruto muttered in defeat. "But don't tell me that I didn't warn you."

"You'll protect me anyways," Sakura winked at him and interlocked her right arm with Naruto's left. "I am ready if you are."

"Troublesome," Naruto grumbled as his right hand went to the door knob. He twisted the handle and pushed the heavy oaken door open. The typical stench of smoke, alcohol, food, and too many people greeted the two as they entered the dimly lit Inn. Naruto was surprised to find the Inn crowded with people as his eyes adjusted to the new light, but didn't let his surprise show. His eyes studied the men and women within the Inn quickly and nodded once as a greeting as everyone inside had turned to watch the newcomers.

Naruto directed Sakura's attention towards a free table in one of the darker corners in the back of the room and watched as Sakura parted from him and made her way through the crowded room as if she had done this many times before. A small smirk threatened to split his serious expression but his eyes narrowed on a certain Kusa nuke-nin, who had been studying Sakura a little too intently for Naruto's taste. And since her path would lead pass the Grass shinobi, Naruto's eyes stayed focused on the Kusa ninja and watched as the shinobi's hands shot out in an attempt to pull Sakura into his lap.

But before Naruto could even react, Sakura's fist shot out and connected with the Kusa-nin's face. The sound of bones breaking echoed through the silent room and everyone watched the shinobi drop dead where he lay and without slowing, Sakura stepped over his corpse.

Naruto felt his face split in a smile and he knew that all his worry was for naught. He was overjoyed at the stellar performance by Sakura and could only approve of her message to the entire room that messing with her would mean certain pain if not death. Shrugging his shoulders as curious eyes were watching him, Naruto made his walk over to the barkeep to ask for a room and a couple of drinks and some food.

"What can I do for you and your companion?" The barkeep asked as Naruto reached the bar.

"A bottle of sake, some food, and a room," Naruto grunted as he tried to listen in on the conversations that had started up again.

"Sure," the barkeep responded and placed a key and a sake bottle with two saucers onto the countertop. "I'll bring the food to your table. Is there anything else?"

"Nope," Naruto responded and pocketed the key before grabbing the sake bottle with the two saucers and walked over to the table Sakura had sat down at.

"And, do you still think that they will try and rape me?" Sakura asked while grinning.

Naruto laughed, "No no, you showed them alright." He handed one saucer to Sakura and started pouring the sake, "By the way Sakura-chan what did you do to him? This certainly wasn't your normal chakra enhanced strength or else that guy would have been launched through the wall."

"Curious aren't we Naruto-kun," Sakura teased him. She took a quick sip and scrunched her face at the bitter taste of the rice wine. "I can't believe people actually like to drink this stuff."

"Yeah," Naruto agreed and took his own sip, "Back to my question."

Sakura smiled and explained, "It was a new jutsu Tsu…" Sakura stopped herself as she realized where she was. She took another sip before continuing, "Shishou and I had discussed for a while. Basically I concentrate my chakra to a single point and release all of it upon contact. I guess if I were to go all out, I probably could knock off someone's head or make it explode. I never tried it out before, it was all a theory but I just sort of reacted with that Kusa-nin. I didn't expect him to drop dead either. Oh well," Sakura shrugged with her shoulder nonchalantly in an attempt to not show her worry over the strong technique. It had surprised her that releasing her chakra in an instant to a single spot on the person's face, would result in the bones shattering and the brain actually imploding. "Guess the technique works better than expected."

"Heh," Naruto chuckled. "That's pretty amazing Sakura-chan."

"So Naruto, do you recognize anyone in here?" Sakura asked as her eyes scanned the crowd carefully.

Naruto followed her line of sight and took the time to take a closer look at everyone. "Nah I am sorry, not a single one. Do you?"

Sakura shook her head slowly as she studied a group of Kiri nuke-nin, "Not really but I think that table across the room with the Kiri shinobi… I think one of them is one of the Seven Swordsman of the Mist."

"You think?" Naruto asked as he looked at the Kiri shinobi Sakura had mentioned. As Naruto studied them, said three shinobi looked over as well and their eyes met. One of the Kiri shinobi nodded in a greeting, which Naruto returned before turning back to look at Sakura. "How'd you know?"

"I looked through Shishou's bingo book once and I could have sworn that I saw that face in there," Sakura explained and smiled. "But I am not sure. I am probably mistaken."

"Does it really matter?" Naruto asked as he saw the barkeep coming over with their food. "Ah finally I am starving."

"What did you order?" Sakura asked as she herself was famished.

"No idea, I just told him to bring us something."

"Here is your food," the barkeep said as he reached the table and placed two bowls of stew in front of each with a loaf of bread lying on top of it. "Enjoy!"

"Thanks," Naruto responded and went to try the stew. But before he shoved the first spoonful into his mouth, he raised an eyebrow in question and looked at the barkeep that was still standing at their table. "Yes?"

"Pardon my curiosity but could you tell me which village you two hail from? A few of the others and me are rather interested in finding out and excuse my brashness but neither of you appear in any bingo books."

Naruto chuckled as he looked from the barkeep into the room and saw the attention of everyone, including the Kiri-nin focused on them. He smiled and said, "No you can't, it's a secret."

Stunned, the barkeep apologized and hastily walked away. "What was all that about?" Sakura asked in between eating.

"Stupid bounty hunters," Naruto growled. "They are just trying to figure out how much we are worth. And since we aren't listed in their respected bingo books, they assume we are worth a lot."

"But didn't you say we were safe while staying here?" Sakura asked while frowning.

"Yes we are," Naruto explained "But once we leave tomorrow, expect company."

Sakura nodded in understanding and continued to eat. Once she finished, she scanned the room again and found several tables to be suddenly empty. "Who do you think will come after us?"

"Your Swordsman most likely," Naruto replied without looking up from his stew as he dunked part of his bread into the broth. "Don't worry about it too much."

"I am not," Sakura snapped at him a little annoyed. "Sorry, I am a bit tired."

"It's alright," Naruto replied and put his spoon down as he finished eating. "C'mon let's go to bed and rest up."

She nodded and they both got up from where they sat and walked past the bar and towards the stairs leading to the second floor. Naruto quickly placed some money on the counter and both he and Sakura vanished within their room. They quickly went about to setup several traps and seals and when they were done, they slipped into the bed together. Sakura snuggled into Naruto's chest as he lay on his side with his arms wrapped around her, "Good night Naruto-kun."

"Night Sakura-chan" and both closed their eyes as they fell asleep.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX****XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

A rainy morning greeted the two as they woke to the rising of the sun. Naruto groaned and rolled onto his back as he wanted to sleep a little a longer. Sakura, however, was wide awake and had a different idea in her head. She carefully slipped her leg over Naruto's waist and then pushed herself on top of him and straddled his hips.

"Morning sleepy head," She whispered and lowered her head and kissed him as her hands began to rub Naruto's chest.

"Morning," Naruto grumbled after they kissed and he fought to pry his eyes open. Using his hands to help him, he rubbed the sleep out of his eyes. And when they finally opened, he looked up at a beautiful flushed face. He grinned and placed his left hand onto her back, while his right rested on her hips. He pushed her gently, telling her to lower herself so he could kiss her again.

She obeyed the silent command and she found herself ensnared by Naruto's lips. She felt his tongue beg for entrance into her mouth and once again she obeyed without questions. Their tongues danced and kissed and she let out a soft moan as she felt him grow beneath her and brush against her moistening walls.

Part of her mind screamed at her, telling her to slow down, telling her that this was all going too fast but the other half wanted more, it wanted everything. Even her body betrayed her as she realized she had slowly begun to grind against him as they kissed. She could feel her core heat up with anticipation and lust as they continued to share their feelings for each others.

She gasped and broke the kiss as one of Naruto's hands found one of her breasts. She ground harder against him, telling him not to stop as she immediately closed the lost distance between their lips by bucking forward. She heard Naruto grunt in surprise at her reaction and his tongue quickly resumed the passionate dance with hers as his hand slowly knit her breast.

"Naruto don't stop," Sakura breathed between their kisses as she felt her core overheat. She was certain that her panties and Naruto's boxer shorts were soaked with her juices as she continued to grind against Naruto's erect member but surprisingly she didn't feel any shame at such a dirty thought.

"Sakura-chan," Naruto huffed as he felt her hips and his own member tremble in anticipation.

"Ohhhh," Sakura moaned and broke the kiss as her head snapped upright and her grinding hips slowed down. Her eye lids were almost closed and she breathed heavily as she tried to calm down. Through half lidded eyes she looked at Naruto as her hands were balled onto his chest and fisting his shirt.

Her hips continued to unconsciously grind against him and she felt his hands rest on her hips and thighs. She smirked and in a swift motion the sound of tearing fabric was heard as she tore the shirt right off him. His eyes were wide in surprise but a smile quickly played across his face. His hands moved up to her shirt and he pulled it over her head as she lifted her arms in order to help him. Her pink hair fell back down to her shoulders and her nipples stood erect at the sudden draft of cold air rushing over her hot skin.

She suddenly found one of her nipples captured by Naruto's warm mouth and she gasped in pleasure as Naruto's member shifted beneath her as he rocketed upward. Her head snapped back in pleasure and her hips began a different grinding pattern as she felt the tip of Naruto's penis brush against her walls as it tried to enter her even though panties and boxers were still in the way.

"Naruto," she moaned as his tongue played with her erect nipple while one hand played with her other breast, whilst the other kneaded her buttocks. She placed her hands onto his shoulders and pushed him away, telling him to lie down again.

Naruto did as he was asked and saw her finger the rubber band of his boxers as Sakura had her eyes closed as the grinding had intensified yet again. He smirked and his hands traveled to her panties and he started to pull them off. Sakura's eyes snapped open and she stopped grinding as she felt her panties start to move. She looked down at Naruto and lifted her hips while rolling to her side to ease the removal of her garment. As her panties fell from her legs, Naruto was already pulling off his own shorts, and when she looked at his member she gulped in hesitation.

Sakura was nervously shaking a little as she crawled back on top of him and carefully sat back down and straddled his hips. She gasped at the new feeling as her lips slowly folded themselves around Naruto's shaft. She sat there for a few seconds, getting used to the feeling before opening her eyes again. She smiled uneasily but her hips slowly started to move up and down his shaft coating it with her juices.

Naruto raised himself a little and pulled Sakura down towards him as he captured her mouth with his. His hands were gently resting on her hips as she slid along the shaft of his penis. "Are you sure you want to do this Sakura-chan?" He asked in concern and received a hesitant nod as she bit her lower lip.

"Yes," She whispered hoarsely too afraid to trust her voice. "Be gentle."

Naruto nodded and together they positioned each other. With Naruto's help, Sakura slowly lowered herself onto his fully erect penis and as Naruto slowly entered her extremely tight treasure cove, he watched her face in concern and looked for any signs of pain.

"Is everything alright?" Naruto asked in concern as Sakura had finally taken him in. She smiled weakly and nodded. "Just go slowly," Naruto suggested and waited for her to be ready.

She inhaled and exhaled a couple of times and slowly began to lift herself and lower again. She felt him inside her, felt him pushing apart her tight walls, stretching her tissue to make it more comfortable, and as she relaxed, she increased her pace. Minutes into riding Naruto, Sakura shifted slightly and gasped in pain and ecstasy as the tip of Naruto's penis brushed against a very sensitive spot deep inside of her. Caught completely off guard, she toppled over and Naruto quickly caught her and lowered himself along with her gently to the bed as she lay on his chest.

"Oh wow," Sakura huffed as neither moved.

Naruto gently rubbed her back, "Sakura-chan we can stop if you want. It's okay… really!"

Sakura twisted her head and positioned her chin to lie on his chest as she looked up at him, "Can we switch? My legs feel like they are made of pudding…"

Naruto didn't know how to answer. He hadn't expected Sakura wanting to continue, so he did the only logical thing he could think off, he nodded.

Sakura slowly lifted her hips and moaned as she felt Naruto's thick member slide out of her and caused her skin to form goose bumps. She rolled off him and onto her back and waited for Naruto to position himself above her. She hesitantly spread her legs and Naruto inched closer as he pushed her legs apart a bit further.

His hands intertwined with hers as he positioned himself above her, "Are you ready?" He received a soft nod and his tip brushed against her sensitive doors before pushing them apart and entering slowly. Giving her time to adjust, Naruto slowly increased the pace until he was going at a moderate speed. He listened to her labored breathing and even though he wanted to go faster, he restrained himself from doing so.

Naruto felt the pressure in and surrounding his penis increase as he and Sakura reached their climax and a soft mewl and a tightening of Sakura's grip on his hands signaled her orgasm. Naruto pushed through hers even as her labored breathing slowly turned to pained moans. But he was so close himself, he just couldn't stop. His blue eyes met her jaded green and at the moment of meeting, Naruto's dam broke and he felt his pressure subside. His pace decreased and quickly stopped all together.

He lowered himself on top of her and forced his arms beneath her frame, and once he had her in an embrace, he rolled onto his sides, pulling her along with him. Again, Sakura found herself lying on top of Naruto and as both breathed heavily, Naruto's strong hands lovingly caressed her bare back. She felt Naruto's penis slowly decrease in size within her and moments later, it slipped out of her vagina releasing the pressure on her oversensitive walls.

And as she closed her eyes in contentment, Sakura realized that the part of her mind that had been screaming to stop, telling her that it was going too fast, had fallen silent.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX****XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Naruto disarmed the seals and traps they had set the previous night as he waited for Sakura to finish her shower and get ready. Luckily he didn't have to wait long for Sakura to exit the small bathroom fully dressed in her civvies. He studied her, mesmerized by the glow surrounding her, but frowned when he saw her walk with a slight limp that was barely noticeable.

"Is everything alright with you?" Naruto asked in concern and walked over to her. "Are you hurting?"

Sakura looked into his face and smiled weakly, "I am good, just a little sore."

Naruto nodded in understanding and held her close to him, "I am sorry."

"Don't be," Sakura muffled into his chest as half her face rested on his muscular front while staring out of the tiny window of their room. The rain had finally stopped and the sun was currently fighting for dominance high above in the cloudy sky.

"We should leave," Sakura muttered as her body embraced the warmth that Naruto emitted.

"Yeah we probably should," Naruto mumbled as his head rested on hers as he followed her view to look out of the window. "My toad returned while you showered," he softly added.

As much as she hated it, Sakura broke the warming embrace they shared and looked up into Naruto's face, "And where will we meet your contact?"

"She suggested a little farming village behind Lightning Country's borders. I looked at the map and I believe it's about a four day trip from here." Naruto filled her in. "With luck, we might reach the border tonight, and then it's another three days of travel to the village. I sent the toad back telling her we'd meet her there in a week."

"Your contact is a woman?" Sakura asked suspiciously. A tight knot had formed at the pit of her stomach and Sakura thought, _"Damn don't tell me that I am jealous."_

"Yeah she is," Naruto answered in confusion. "Why, is something wrong Sakura-chan?"

"Oh it's nothing. I just assumed your contact would be a man. I guess it makes sense for Jiraiya to have female informers as well," Sakura slowly sputtered out. She was hoping it sounded rational.

"Yes there are a few in his spy network," Naruto answered while nodding. He smiled, "Are you ready? Let's head downstairs and return the key."

"Sure," Sakura said and went to the bed to grab their little traveling pack.

"Do you want me to carry it this time?" Naruto asked as he watched her. "I wouldn't want to give you the impression that you would have to carry our pack all the time."

Sakura shook her head, "No it's fine Naruto. I really don't mind. I am used to carrying my medical pack when going on large missions. This little thing hardly weighs anything."

"Okay but my offer still stands," Naruto grinned and opened the door.

They both walked downstairs and headed towards the bar that at the same time worked as the reception. Behind the bar stood an older woman, who hadn't been there the previous night. The woman studied the two vehemently as they approached.

"Good Morning," Naruto greeted the woman and placed the key on the countertop. "Thank you for your hospitality. Have a good day," Naruto finished as he gave money for their one night stay.

"Good day to you," the woman responded and pocketed the key and money. "Be careful, rumors say that Kumo Anbu are in the area looking for one of their own."

"Thanks for the warning," Naruto smiled and turned to leave. "Let's go Sakura-chan."

"You think someone's going to follow us?" Sakura asked as they stepped outside the Inn and onto the road. They continued to walk north towards Lightning Country.

Naruto shook his head, "Nah they are probably waiting for us. It's easier to setup an ambush than follow someone. We might be lucky and not run into anyone. Most nuke-nin would stay off the roads, let alone walk into Lightning Country. They probably think that we are from Kumogakure, and the fact that their Anbu are in the area looking for someone should only work to our advantage."

"True," Sakura said. "Let's hope so at least."

"Yes let's hope," Naruto said while grinning as he and Sakura slowly put distance between them and the Inn. And as they walked, they began talking about Jiraiya and Tsunade. They told each other of the experiences they made with their mentors and the hardships of training during the three years that Naruto and Sakura had spent apart.

* * *

**A/N: Welcome back! Hope you enjoyed this chapter. Leave your wonderful reviews and critique.**** I want you guys, my readers, to come up with a name to Sakura's new technique. Just leave it in one of your reviews and I will pick the one I like the most. Of course I will mention you in the next update and give you the credit.**


	6. Of Summons and Bugs

**A/N: SURPRISE!** Totally don't count on getting another fast update from me for a while.

Now I need to clear a few things up first:  
1. The majority of the chapter pretty much wrote itself, primarily the entire Naru/Saku interactions.  
2. Since the majority wrote itself, I hold no responsibility for my actions.  
3. I swore to myself back in the day when I started writing this story that I would **not** write any lemons into this chapter. If you read Chapter 4, you know how miserably I failed in that regard.  
4. There is a war going on outside, a war between my minions and all Naru/Hina fans. It all started one innocent evening when **KingKakashi** and I discussed our stories via e-mails. The next thing I knew, Zombie Hefster was born (me) and was trying to take over all Naru/Hina fans with my Naru/Saku minions. As it stands, Europe already belongs to me because KingKakashi's Naru/Hina fans from Europe were swallowed whole by my armies. I now set my eyes on the US. I am coming for you KingKakashi and you are not prepared!  
Now this war has been harmless and very enjoyable, considering I don't have any pairings in Naruto that I hate or loath. I simply just don't enjoy some as much as others. But apparently KingKakashi's propaganda machine is simply too strong in brainwashing his own Naru/Hina minions into believing that innocent little me is evil incarnate. Therefore, I like to refer to Kingkakashi's followers (sheep) as the Disillusional Horde.  
_So to all my Zombie minions and fellow Naru/Saku fans, let the war continue! But be civilized or else I'll start writing Sasuke centric stories and that's when the world will END!  
_5. If you can't tell that #4 is a friendly joke between two authors, I don't know what to do with you my fellow readers. But both KingKakashi and I have received many funny reviews and PMs regarding this war. All of course from those pesty little Disillusional Horde minions that KingKakashi has brainwashed so well. Let's pray he really did kill off Hinata in his latest chapter. Good riddence if you ask me. :-P  
So don't be shy and leave funny reviews on KingKakashi's story or drop him a PM. But remember to be civilized and keep it funny to all parties. This isn't anything personal, nor are we here to argue which Naruto pairing is the right one. It's a free world people with free opinions. Don't be stupid.

Now I am going to start something new. I shall answer/comment on some reviews:

**Winnow:** Yes Shikamaru knows even though I expertly failed to mention it.

**xmistery:** Nope final destination is still Iwa for Naruto and Sakura. Like previously mentioned (I believe it was Chapter 3), Naruto and Sakura are heading to Iwa by traveling through Lightning Country.

**Bikiluf:** Sakura will be pregnant but not this quickly. "Puncture Punch" is a good idea and on my list of possible names.

**kabata4life:** What no review for my other story _Gone_? I see the force is weak in you. About the name for Sakura's technique, "Kasuru Banshi (light touch of death" not bad young grasshopper not bad indeed. It's on my list.

**KingKakashi:** What? Are my zombie eyes deceiving me? Praise? I actually got praise from you? (LOL) Sakura's jutsu name: "Ssuritsubusu Panchi no Jutsu (Pulverization Punch Jutsu)" I like it but you sure there are two S in Ssuritsubusu????

**Chaspol:** Glad you liked Temari's reaction and your entry for naming Sakura's jutsu is on my list "Promise of Pain".

**Gravenimage:** Nope sorry, Naruto and Sakura won't meet Sasuke and join up to defeat Danzo. I suggest you re-read chapter 2.

To all others who left a review many thanks but this naming all will simply take too long and I can defeat Shikamaru in laziness.

* * *

**F****ū****rinkazan**

Chapter – 5

"Of Summons and Bugs"

The morning turned to noon and eventually into afternoon as Naruto and Sakura walked along the roads heading towards Lightning Country's border. They had been busy telling each other of their experiences during the three years they had spent apart during Naruto's training.

Sakura had asked Naruto about the places he had visited, the sort of people he had met, how spending three years with Jiraiya had been, and how the blond had coped with being away from Konoha for that long.

Naruto had answered each of her inquiring questions with an eagerness of a young child. He had described some of the places that he and Jiraiya had visited. Ranging from the famed bloody cliffs in the Land of Water to the snow covered mountain ranges of the Land of Wind. Naruto explained to her how the bloody cliffs were not in fact tinted red by the blood of the Land of Water's enemies as the myth claimed, but in reality the cliffs consisted of a special type of red sand stone. He described to her how the setting sun threw the cliffs and the raging seas below into an eerie reddish glow that made the sky burn a bright orange. And even though the fascinating description that Naruto offered of the bloody cliffs made her want to witness that event herself, Sakura had to admit that she was a little concerned and frightened of his descriptions. Thanks to Naruto's in depth imagery, Sakura was able to visualize the bloody cliffs so well that one would think that she had been there herself. But even though it appeared as a serene picture, to Sakura the reddish tinted landscape and burning sky made her think of the mighty Nine-Tailed Fox Demon imprisoned within her blond companion.

And as Naruto eagerly continued to describe the many places he had visited with Jiraiya, Sakura's hand had slowly found one of his and she held on to him wanting him to physically know that she was there for him. And even though he didn't let it show, Sakura knew that Naruto was happier than ever.

And as the day had slowly wound down, her mood had soured slightly as she was forced numerous times to remember that Naruto harbored the mightiest and deadliest of all demons within him and she secretly wished that she could help him in freeing him of that burden. However, Tsunade had explained to her once the importance behind Naruto's seal and Sakura knew that until the day Naruto would die, his burden to be the jailor of the Kyuubi would be an ever presence on his shoulders.

A soft smile played on Sakura's lips as she tightened her hold on Naruto's hand as she remembered the day that Tsunade had revealed to her that Naruto was a Jinchuuriki, especially the Jinchuuriki of the legendary Nine-Tail thought to have been defeated by the Yondaime Hokage. That day, after much self reflection, she sought out Hatake Kakashi to speak to him about her thoughts, concerns, and above all, the confusion in her heart and soul regarding her two teammates Naruto and Sasuke. That day she changed and finally viewed life around her differently. Yes, it had been that day that had opened her eyes and with the help of her sensei, Sakura was finally able to come to terms with herself.

That day she had said a silent farewell to her childhood crush as she stood on top of the Yondaime's head as the sun set in the sea of green that surrounded Konohagakure. A silent tear had rolled down her soft white cheeks as the warm summer breeze rocked her hair gently with the last sun rays crawling over the darkening horizon and she felt an immense weight drop off her shoulders and heart as the world around her was cast in the darkness that was the night. And as the pale white moon climbed slowly into the sky, Sakura's thoughts were on her blond teammate and she made a solemn vow to be there for him, just like he had always been there for her; and for the first time since Sasuke had left Konoha, Sakura could truly say that she was happy and at peace.

"Ne Sakura-chan are you alright?" Naruto's caring voice drifted into her mind as she reflected upon the day she had grown up. A tear spilled from her eyes and she consciously wiped it away with her fingers and smiled.

"I am sorry Naruto," Sakura muttered and let out an ironic laugh. "I was just thinking about something, please go on. I want to hear more about your journey with Jiraiya."

"I… Did I do something wrong?" Naruto asked in concern and looked away from her dejected.

"What no," Sakura almost shouted and stopped forcing him to do so as well. Her hands went up to his face and turned to look into his eyes. "I am not crying because I am upset or sad or that you did something wrong Naruto. I- I cried because I remembered something, something that made me happy and… and I am happy Naruto-kun, with you I am really happy. I love you and I want to support you, the way you supported me all this time. I am not going anywhere Naruto-kun. I am here to stay with you until the bitter end."

"Y-you really mean it?" Naruto looked at her in hope. And as she looked into his loving blue eyes and she realized how frail Naruto was behind his mask of stupidity and hyperactivity. And in that moment, Sakura realized that she was the reason that Naruto was still Naruto. Hadn't it been for his promise to bring Sasuke back, she somehow knew that the Naruto standing before her now would have given up a long time ago. She just knew that Naruto would have given in to the hatred that surrounded him in Konoha. She understood that she now held Naruto's happiness, sanity, and future in her delicate small hands and that there was no turning back from the path she had turned on. Unknowingly, when she had allowed herself to save him, to accept him, and to love him, she had bound her fate with Naruto's and she knew that she didn't regret a thing.

"Yes, every single word," Sakura said and pulled him lower as she tip toed to kiss him. "I am sorry I took so long to see the truth Naruto-kun."

A smirk crossed Naruto's face and his eyes twinkled in mischief, "Better late than never."

At his sudden boldness, Sakura's eyes grew wide and her mouth hung open in shock. Naruto laughed and captured her lips with his, "Thank you Sakura-chan… for everything."

She slung her arms around his neck and felt herself being lifted off the ground as Naruto's arms snaked around her waist and he straightened as they were interlocked in their passionate kiss. They broke the kiss and she smiled warmly as she slowly slit down his frame. Her feet quickly touching the dirt road again and they both resumed walking as Naruto's arm was slung over her shoulder and pulled her closer.

"I think this might just work out," Naruto quietly said as the two walked arm in arm towards Lightning Country.

"What is Naruto?"

"Us," Naruto replied and looked at her smiling; "Finding a quiet place to hide, to prepare, and perhaps to grow old together."

"You'd really want something like that?" Sakura asked insecurely. "Grow old with someone like me, with someone that hurt you for so long?"

Naruto tilted his head to the side in confusion, "Y-you don't want to?"

"No, no," Sakura added quickly. "I'd love to grow old with you Naruto. I'm just saying," She looked away in shame before looking back up into his blue eyes with tears brimming at her jaded green. "I just can't help but feel that I don't deserve you…"

"Nonsense," Naruto interjected and paused as he thought. He stopped walking and turned to face Sakura, a serious expression settling on his face. "Marry me!"

"…"

"Marry me Sakura-chan," Naruto asked her again and smiled.

"I…"

"I know it's sudden. I know it's too soon and I am definitely sure that this is most likely a really dumb idea but I love you. I always have and always will. This… I…"

Naruto stopped talking as Sakura placed her fingers over his lips to get him to shut up. "Wow," Sakura finally said as she got over her shock. "I… Naruto… I… I don't know what to say…"

"Say yes," he mumbled through her fingers that still covered his lips.

"Naruto," Sakura choked out his name. "Marriage is a great responsibility. Do you even know and understand what you are asking?"

Naruto nodded vehemently and took her hands into his, "Of course I do Sakura-chan. It's about commitment. It's a promise of a lifetime to that one special person that no matter how difficult life will become, they will always be together and protect the one they love. That neither will be alone and…" Naruto stopped speaking when he saw the first tears roll off her beautiful face. His head dropped a microscopic inch, his eyes dulled a little and one of his fake grins split his face in two and he chuckled, "Yeah you're right, it really was an idiotic idea. Forget that I asked. C'mon let's keep going."

Naruto walked but stopped when his arm didn't follow since he still held on to Sakura's one hand. The pinkette was still standing, rooted in place with her head lowered while her hair obscured her face and she mumbled something that he didn't catch. Worried he had hurt her with his question; he stepped closer and waited for her to say something again.

Awkward silence hung between the two as Naruto waited for Sakura to react but the pinkette was having an inner monologue that Naruto couldn't follow or hear. _"How can I not say yes? I saw how much he needs me, saw in his eyes how frail he is and I do love him and I meant every word, so why won't that tiny word cross my lips? He is all I have left, he is my world, has been my world for so long, so why can't I give him that one simple answer? I already decided to spend the rest of my life with him. I feel so warm, is this love or more? Is this what Mother had spoken about when I asked her how she knew that Dad was the right one?"_

"S-Sakura-chan," Naruto asked when the woman still hadn't moved or said anything.

"_Baka say something to him,"_ Sakura screamed at herself wanting to tear out her hair in frustration at her own stupid self. _"Can't you see how much you're hurting him? He is Naruto! He will never hurt you. He will never leave you! He loves you, he… he is waiting for you… Say yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! You stupid bitch tell him that you'd be honored to marry him. Tell him yes!"_

"Sakura-chan listen," Naruto stumbled in the hopes to safe whatever he could. He was confused, he should have known she'd reacted like this, should have known that even though there was love between them that it wasn't that kind of love. He should have known that his question was too soon, too sudden, and like he had said a dumb idea. But he loved her so much and deep down he knew that they would be happy together, so he had taken his chance and he had failed. "I understand. Don't beat yourself up over this, it's not a big deal if… if you don't want to get married. I am sorry that I asked. I am positive that you had this special moment all planned out and I am sorry that I destroyed your dream by asking you to marry me while standing in the middle of nowhere on a dirt road and on the run from Konoha."

"Yes!" Sakura finally stammered.

Naruto was shocked and felt like he was slapped across his face, _"Did she just agree to my chaotic rambling? Am I right? Did I really hurt her that much by asking for her hand in marriage?"_

"I am sorry," Naruto choked out trying to prevent the hurt to enter his voice. "I am sorry that I asked."

"No," Sakura muttered and shook her head.

Naruto frowned, _"W-what?"_ He waited, looked at her, hoping to look into her forest green eyes that were hiding behind her pink mane but he wasn't given the chance as she flung herself at him. Startling him as her lips pressed against his. He felt the salty taste of her tears intermingle with their kisses and Naruto had to agree that in a weird way this turned him on as he felt his heart beat quicken.

"Yes! Yes! Yes!" Sakura breathed onto his lips repeatedly and pressed herself against him. "Yes!"

"Y-you mean," Naruto blinked as he broke their kisses to look at her again.

"Yes!" She said and a beaming face of happiness greeted him, conveying him all that he needed to know.

"R-really?" Naruto asked once more, afraid he was imagining everything.

Sakura nodded, tears still pouring down her eyes, but where Naruto expected to see a hurtful expression, he could only find true happiness, love, and adoration for him. He swallowed visibly, his arms were shaking, and his knees turned to pudding and the butterflies in his stomach that were so close to dying suddenly batted their wings with renewed strength and intensity that he was overwhelmed with emotions.

"I'd be honored to marry you Naruto-kun," Sakura whispered into his ear.

"YAHOO!" Naruto shouted so loud that the birds in the surrounding woods squawked and retreated into the sky.

Sakura chuckled and held both of her hands over her heart and watched Naruto jump up and down cheering like a young child. Her head turned towards the general direction of Konoha, _"I hope you approve of my decision Mom and Dad. Naruto, he is special and I love him dearly. Marrying him, it feels right. It feels like the right choice to do."_

Deep within Naruto's psyche, lying under a blooming Sakura tree on a small island in the middle of a crystalline lake that was surrounded by an ancient forest, a lone blood red fox with nine tails opened one of its eyes' as his ears twitched and listened. The fox rolled onto his side and looked up into the cherry tree above him and he rumbled in a deep dark voice, **"These two move faster than a pair of rabbits in mating season."**

The demon grinned viciously, its razor sharp teeth fully displayed. A massive paw rose into the air and swiped the air above the Kitsune's head once before lowering his appendage again. And as the demon waited, a window to the outside world materialized for the Kyuubi to look through and chuckled. **"I wonder if these two will go at it like rabbits too. I guess only time will tell but until then, I can indulge myself of the scenery."**

The Kyuubi roared in laughter as he watched Naruto and Sakura in a passionate embrace and kissing.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Dusk had arrived and the orange sun slowly set over the western horizon has Naruto and Sakura traveled north. The road they traveled on slowly twisted through the grassy knolls of the countryside and the two walked arm in arm with their heads stuck together and enjoyed the moment.

"Do you really mean it Sakura-chan?"

Sakura rolled her eyes and smiled. "For the up tenth time Naruto, yes I meant it."

"Just checking," Naruto said with a big smile plastered onto his face.

"Naruto do you sense them?" Sakura asked breaking the silence between the two after several minutes.

"Yes," Naruto whispered.

"Do you think it's one of those nuke-nin trying to cash in?" Sakura quietly asked and quickly cycled some of her chakra into her tired bones and muscles.

"Not sure, could be them." Naruto answered and pumped his hands into fists several times to increase his blood flow and wake his muscles. "Could just be a shinobi traveling."

"What if it's one of those Kumo Anbu we were warned about?" Sakura questioned him and took a few quick steps in front of Naruto and turned to face him. Her hands were clasped behind her back as she balanced on the balls of her feet and to complete the charade, Sakura asked him loudly, "So you really want to marry me? Marry a poor and uneducated girl like me?"

Naruto smiled realizing what Sakura was doing and laughed heartily. "To me Sakura-chan, riches don't matter. What you miss in wealth and education, you make up with your good nature and definitely your good looks. And to answer your question, yes I do want to marry you and spend the rest of my life with you right next to me."

"Halt!"

Naruto and Sakura stopped. Naruto raised his head and Sakura slowly turned around so that she was facing the same way as Naruto. Both of them saw a Kumo Anbu standing several feet in front of them on the road.

Naruto wanted to frown because he hadn't felt that shinobi at all but refrained from doing so. The one he and Sakura had picked up on was only now arriving with a third Anbu appearing as well and they stood around Naruto and Sakura in a triangle formation and had Naruto and Sakura surrounded. Knowing that Anbu units tended to consist of four man cells, Naruto guessed that the fourth Anbu was most likely still in hiding somewhere behind them.

"N-Naruto-kun," Sakura fearfully called his name and quickly attached herself to Naruto's arm and played the terrified female civilian.

"Sakura-chan there is nothing to worry about," Naruto continued their charade as he tried to calm and comfort her in front of the Kumo Anbu. His head then moved to the first Anbu and asked in a very respectful tone, "Excuse my fiancée, this is her first time meeting a shinobi from a foreign country. How may we be of service?"

"Names!" The first Anbu snapped and Sakura visibly flinched at his angry voice bellowing his demands.

"I'm Naruto and my fiancée here is Sakura."

"From?"

"Yokohama, it is a small desert village in the Land of Wind." Naruto replied and made a mental note to thank Gaara for having him told about that village once.

"State your reason for traveling into Lightning Country?"

"Um," Naruto grinned and scratched his head. "To be honest, we want to get married and start a new life. Our home was destroyed by a terrible sand storm and after spending months in a refugee camp, we decided to leave our home country. I… we don't want to raise a family in a country that can't support their inhabitants. I have heard many great things about Lightning Country and I once overheard a man talking, who claimed that Kumogakure was a wonderful city that would help people in need."

"Kumo has no use for weak people," the Anbu spat and pulled out a scroll. "Have you seen this man?" The Anbu asked angrily. "He is a wanted criminal and very dangerous."

Naruto squeezed his eyes to get a better look at the image, "Nope sorry. What did he do?"

"He is a rapist and a murder," the Anbu replied and Naruto could have sworn that the man was smiling behind his mask as Sakura continued to play her part and started whimpering in fear.

"Oh," Naruto muttered in thought. He looked from the terrified Sakura to the Anbu, "I guess traveling at night won't be safe then? Would you happen to know of an Inn nearby that we could stay at?"

"Keep walking for another kilometer or two and you should reach a fork in the road. Take the road branching off to the right and follow another five clicks. You should reach the 'Praying Mantis' by midnight." The lead Anbu replied and nodded to his fellow shinobi and all three vanished, leaving Naruto and Sakura behind on the empty road.

Guessing that they were still being watched, Naruto turned to Sakura and hugged her in a show to comfort the terrified woman. "Shhh Sakura-chan everything will be alright. The nice Anbu will scare away the criminal. C'mon let's keep going and find that Inn that they mentioned."

Sakura nodded quietly and continued to play their charade as she refused to let go of Naruto's arm. Naruto squeezed her hand gently and leaned into her ear and whispered, "That's some brilliant acting Sakura-chan."

"Thanks," Sakura whispered back and made sure to continue her role of the scared fiancée a little longer.

And just as the Anbu had said, they arrived at the 'Prancing Mantis' by midnight. From the outside it looked like a large rundown Inn but when Naruto and Sakura entered the building, their mouths threatened to drop to the floor as they spied upon the luxurious furnishings.

"Oh boy this is going to eat most of our money," Naruto muttered quietly to Sakura as they stepped into the grand foyer that was illuminated by a giant crystalline chandelier. In the back, a pair of stairs snaked up towards the second floor while various sofa's and small tables were situated around a large fire place to the left. And to the right they saw a young receptionist standing behind an ancient red oak desk.

Naruto and Sakura walked towards the desk and were greeted as they still studied the intricate wood carvings all around the entrance hall.

"Good evening," the young woman said. "How may I help you?"

"Evening," Sakura replied as she realized Naruto was too distracted by studying the many different wood carvings that depicted shinobi fight scenes. She had immediately realized that the same shinobi was in each carving and guessed that these images must have been glimpses into the shinobi's life. "We would like a room for the night."

"Most certainly," the young woman replied and smiled as she placed a large book on the desk, "If you would please sign your names."

"Certainly," Sakura responded and wrote her name into the book. She turned towards Naruto to let him write his own but realized that the blond had stepped away from her and was across the room studying a certain wood carving intently. Sakura sighed and rolled with her eyes as she wrote Naruto's name into the guestbook.

"Thank you," the woman sung softly and placed a key onto the counter. "If you would please go up the flight of stairs and turn left on the second floor, your room will be the third on the right."

"Thank you," Sakura thanked the woman and took the key. "Would it still be possible to get something to eat?"

The receptionist looked at the clock behind her and frowned. "I could ask my father but I doubt we have anything left that is warm. Would sandwiches suffice? We'd bring them to your room."

"Yes and thank you very much for the trouble," Sakura thanked the young woman again and turned to get Naruto and lead him to their room.

They walked upstairs and unlocked the door to their room and entered. It was a decent sized room with dark red plush carpeting, a single queen sized bed in the center by the window and a small drawer to store personal things as well as a cupboard for their clothes. A door on the left lead towards their small bathroom and Sakura was surprised to find a bathtub. She smiled happily and immediately turned on the water.

"Naruto-kun I am going to take a bath," Sakura said as she walked back into the main room and started stripping out of her clothes.

"Okay Sakura-chan," Naruto said and blushed as he saw her undress. He looked away to give her some form of privacy and tried to resist the urge to peak.

Sakura saw what Naruto was doing and smirked. She sneaked up on him as she was naked and forced him to look at her. "That's so cute of you," she said and kissed him. She felt his hands rest on her naked butt and squeezed her gently as their tongues fought for dominance. She moaned lightly and broke the kiss as she was getting cold. "Don't fall asleep. They are going to bring us some food."

Naruto nodded and shamefully studied Sakura's naked body. There were so many things he wanted to do to her at that moment that Naruto quickly grabbed Sakura by her shoulders and turned her towards the bathroom. "Go take your bath Sakura-chan. I can tell you're freezing," Naruto muttered quietly as his mind's eye was still looking at her erect nipples and small goose bumps that covered her soft milky skin.

Sakura turned her head to look over her shoulder and smirked before winking. "Pervert." She walked towards the bathroom with her hips sashaying back and forth on purpose.

Naruto's eyes were glued on her naked rear and he swallowed visibly as he felt his blood shoot towards his pants. He sighed as he fought for self control and went to lie down on the bed. He closed his eyes and was assaulted by images of a naked Sakura teasing him. His eyes snapped open and he muttered a quiet "Damn."

A solid hour had passed and Naruto was lying with his eyes closed on the bed sleeping. Sakura exited the bathroom, a towel wrapped around her while her wet hair was pinned up. She saw Naruto passed out on the bad and frowned as she looked around the room to see if they had received anything to eat yet. _"I swear if he slept through getting our food, I'm going to kill him."_

She walked towards the bed and carefully sat down at the corner of it next to Naruto. She shook him gently with one of her hands, "Naruto wake up. Did they bring the sandwiches?"

"Five more minutes," Naruto mumbled while smacking his lips in his sleep.

Sakura groaned and took the free pillow into her hands. "Baka wake up!" She shouted and smacked him into the face with her pillow.

"What is going on?" Naruto shouted as he leaped into the air and stood defensively on the mattress while his eyes scanned the room.

Sakura suppressed her laughter as she saw him shoot upright and scan their room. "Oh Naruto you're hopeless," She said while shaking her head in amusement.

Naruto blinked and looked down at her. His eyes immediately caught a single water drop roll from her bare shoulder down towards her cleavage only to vanish in the dark chasm between her breasts and towel. Assaulted by more naughty thoughts, Naruto swallowed and jumped off the bed and raced towards the bathroom, "Sorry got to go."

Sakura blinked and looked after him in confusion. Shrugging her shoulders, she dropped her towel and pulled out the bed sheets. Naked, she slipped under the bed sheets and rested her damp head on her pillow and closed her eyes.

A few minutes later, a knock at their door drew Sakura's attention and she groaned in protest. "Naruto! Could you please get the door?"

"Yeah sure," Naruto answered and walked out of the bathroom in nothing but his boxers while brushing his teeth.

He opened the door and suddenly stood in front of the young receptionist, who averted her eyes as she saw him, half naked as she offered a small basket. "I am sorry it took so long but my father insisted on heating up the fire pit again."

"Oh wow thanks a lot," Naruto cheerfully took the basket. "Tell your father that we are very grateful. Goodnight."

"Night," the woman responded and left as Naruto closed the door. He turned towards the bed and smiled with his toothbrush still in his mouth, "Food is here."

"Great, hurry up with your teeth and let's eat. It's almost one thirty in the morning and we need to catch some sleep." Sakura said and picked up her towel before wrapping herself in it as she left the warm comfortable bed sheets.

They quickly ate and brushed their teeth again before Sakura walked to their door to check if it was locked and secured. Naruto was already lying in bed and Sakura turned off the lights to their room. She shuffled back to the bed in the darkness and when she reached it, she once again dropped her towel and slipped under the covers. She inched closer to Naruto and found herself quickly in a loving hold as Naruto pulled her into his body.

"Goodnight Sakura-chan."

"Goodnight Naruto-kun."

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Somewhere at the same time deep within Fire Country, a small group of Konoha ninja stopped to camp. The cold moon hung low in the night sky and several pained groans echoed from the group of assassins.

"Damn I am tired. How are you holding up my eternal rival?"

"Hn," the silver haired Jonin grunted as his lone eye looked up at the moon.

Maito Guy who had asked his rival dropped his head in sadness. He heard one of their downed comrades' shifting and Guy instantly became alert. "Looks like Genma is finally waking." He jumped to his feet and winced as a searing pain shot up his left leg. "Shit I think I sprained my ankle."

"I'll look at it in a minute Guy," Yuugao spoke up as she looked over the lying form of yet another comrade.

"Perimeter is secured. How is Anko?" Iruka worriedly asked Yuugao as he stepped out of the shadows and kneeled besides the Anbu woman as he studied the unconscious Anko.

Yuugao sighed, "I don't know. She lost a lot of blood and her eye is worrying me. I don't have the medical knowledge to remove a damaged eye. I fear for her nerve endings but if we don't remove it, the chances of it getting infected and Anko getting a blood infection is very high. She is already running a slight fever."

"What can we do?" Iruka asked in concern for not only Anko but the ever depressing Yuugao as well.

"I don't know. We can't go back to Konoha without fulfilling our mission first, unless we want to be executed by Danzo," Yuugao muttered as she placed a wet cloth onto Anko's warming forehead.

"There is one person amongst us who can help Anko," Tenzo spoke up as he morphed out of a tree trunk. He walked towards Kakashi and placed a hand on the Jonin's shoulder. "Sempai! Kakashi-sempai! There are no signs of pursuit but we need you, Anko needs you sempai."

Kakashi tore his vision away from the moon and sighed. He'd been feeling so old these past couple of weeks and so tired. He just wanted to lie down and sleep for the rest of his mortal life but couldn't. His demons from the past had caught up with him once more and again he was trapped in an endless mind loop as he reevaluated his life and asked himself if he'd done the right choices.

"Sempai," Tenzo quietly spoke to Kakashi. "I know how you feel. We all do but Naruto… I don't want to believe it myself but everything points to the fact that he actually killed Tsunade-sama and Sakura-san."

"Naruto would never do that," Kakashi roared in anger and grief. "He'd rather kill himself first before unleashing the Kyuubi. You know him; you were their team leader for a while. How can you even think for a second that he killed them?"

"Kakashi that's enough," Guy called over to his rival. "Tenzo didn't mean it and you know that. All of us here know that Naruto would never raise his hand against a fellow Leaf shinobi. But something happened, something that forced Naruto to release the Kyuubi's chakra."

"Listen Kakashi," Guy continued. "We were all at the site where the Anbu found the Hokage's and Sakura's corpses. The area was laced with Kyuubi's chakra and even Shizune-san, who wouldn't believe Danzo, changed her mind after she had examined the corpses. You heard how she confirmed Danzo's story and identified the two corpses to be Tsunade-sama and Sakura-san."

"Shut up," Kakashi snapped and charged Maito Guy. Kakashi tackled the Green Beast of Konoha and unleashed his pent up anger and rage at his former rival. Kakashi's fists connected with bushy brow's face. "Naruto didn't kill them," Kakashi yelled as he was dragged off Guy by the others.

"Control yourself," Yuugao yelled and slapped Kakashi across the face.

Kakashi slumped to the ground with his head hung low in shame and grief. "Naruto can't have… he wouldn't… after all, he is Sensei's son."

"Wait a minute Kakashi," Iruka suddenly spoke up. "Did you just say Naruto was your sensei's son?"

"Yes," Kakashi looked up and made eye contact with everyone, including Guy. "That's why Naruto wouldn't or couldn't have killed them. He is Minato's son for crying out loud." The last sentence Kakashi yelled out was a show of his desperation and proof of his failing belief in his student's innocence.

"Ha so the Gaki's father really is the Yondaime. I always suspected but old man Sarutobi would never tell me," Anko's pained voice suddenly spoke up. Everyone's head turned to the kunoichi and saw her struggle to stand. "Now get your ass out of your head Kakashi and act like a Leaf shinobi. Of course you're correct to assume that the Brat would never kill his Pinky or the Godaime and it's obvious that Danzo is playing us and all of Konoha. The question we need to ask is, whether Shizune is in on Danzo's plans or if she was tricked just like everyone else."

"Anko…" Kakashi whispered her name in astonishment. She had been the last person whom he would expect to support him, let alone believe him.

"Put a sock in it and help me get rid of this useless eye I have now," Anko hissed in pain as her left hand subconsciously went for her destroyed eye.

"Right," Kakashi nodded and quickly walked towards the woman. His hands glowed green and he looked deeply into her last good eye, "This is going to hurt Anko, a lot. I have to disinfect everything…"

"Just do it you pansy," Anko growled.

Everyone watched Kakashi carefully remove Anko's smashed eye. The snake kunoichi had her mouth ripped open in pain but not a single word escaped her as Kakashi removed the eye ball from her socket and cut the nerve endings. He carefully scraped out the socket with one of his kunai and as the blood just shot out of Anko's now empty eye socket, Kakashi's healing chakra disappeared and was replaced by his lightning affinity. The electricity around his hand chirped dangerously and tiny sounds as if a whip would hit flesh surrounded everyone as Kakashi used his lightning chakra to burn and seal the flesh of Anko's eye socket. When the procedure was done, Kakashi stood and turned to his green clad rival.

"Guy… I am sorry."

Guy simply laughed loudly and clapped Kakashi on his shoulder, "My friend there are no needs for apologies."

"I don't think that Shizune would betray the Hokage, let alone Naruto. He is like a younger brother to her," Iruka suddenly spoke up as he was deep in thought. "Naruto told me once that he was the reason the Godaime and Shizune even bothered to return to Konoha. If it hadn't been for Naruto…"

"We can't trust her at the moment," Anko interjected and winced in pain as she waited patiently for Yuugao to hide her now empty eye socket under bandages.

"Why? Do you believe that this is part of Danzo's plan to take control over Konoha?" Iruka spoke up.

"Isn't it obvious," Anko grumbled. "The old war hawk was always after the position of Hokage and now that he finally has it, he sends out the majority of the elite Jonin and Anbu to hunt down and destroy Akatsuki. Have none of you realized that all of us sent out here are all strong supporters of old man Saratubi's Will of Fire? We are in Danzo's way of gaining absolute control over the village and therefore he gives us an impossible task to finish. No one can survive a battle against Akatsuki unharmed. And not being allowed to return home to regain strength and to heal only shows how much he wants us to fail. Look at us, we are the only ones left and what do we have to show for it?"

Everyone was silent as they thought and Anko continued with her argument. Her voice growing angrier the more she talked. "Twenty highly skilled Anbu killed and for what? Some blond dude that ended up blowing himself up and a freak that looked like a plant? And who knows how the other teams are fairing against Akatsuki. Even Jiraiya died to the hands of the Akatsuki leader and he was a fucking Sannin. This entire mission smells like fish to me, bad rotten fish."

"She has a valid point," Tenzo spoke up first only to receive some measured nods.

"So what will we do?" Guy asked.

"We do as we were ordered," Kakashi said and looked at everyone before smiling. "We will hunt down Akatsuki but whoever said of having to fight them? Think about it, while we are officially hunting Akatsuki, we can quietly investigate everything and search for Naruto at the same time. Danzo wouldn't even be able to list us as missing-nin because he ordered us not to return to Konoha unless Akatsuki was destroyed."

"You bet your scrawny little ass that we will look for the Gaki," Anko grinned. "But first," Anko struggled to her feet and eventually stood. She walked towards Iruka and grabbed his face in between her hands. "Don't you ever do that again Iruka. Jumping in between me and that jutsu, were you out of your fucking mind?" Anko yelled at him before her face turned soft. She planted a kiss on the surprised Academy teacher, "But thank you Iruka-kun."

"Ahem," Yuugao coughed into her hands. "I think it is best for us to rest now."

Several approving murmurs broke out and everyone slowly settled down as they closed in for the night.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Naruto slowly woke to the sound of birds singing at their window. He slowly opened his eyes and looked straight into a mob of pink hair. He smiled and sharply inhaled to memorize Sakura's scent. He then inched closer, pressing his body against her back as they lay on their sides. His callused left hand firmly captured something soft and fleshy as he snaked his arm under Sakura's. Curious, Naruto carefully tested the object of sudden interest by touching and kneading.

He froze when Sakura started shifting in his arms. Her legs rubbed together and she let out a contempt sigh. Blinking in surprise of final recognition of what his hand had played with; Naruto pulled his hand away from Sakura's breast in shock.

He was surprised yet again as Sakura suddenly turned in his arms so she was facing him. A pair of jaded eyes spied into his blue and a soft smile split her moist delicate lush lips. "Good morning!"

"Morning Sakura-chan," Naruto replied and suddenly found his lips ensnared by Sakura's. He felt her weight pushing against him and Naruto rolled onto his back as Sakura settled lying on top of him as they kissed.

Another contempt sigh escaped her lips as her head rested on his chest as she listened to his strong heart beat after having kissed him. Naruto's fingers slowly traced circles on her bare skin and Naruto blushed as he asked, "How come you didn't wear a shirt to bed tonight?"

"I am not wearing anything at all," Sakura replied with a tiny smirk.

"Wha… I…. eh?" Naruto spluttered not knowing how to respond as he realized he had been sleeping and holding a completely naked Sakura.

"You know Naruto it is quite cute and sweet of you to be so embarrassed but we already had sex together," Sakura said and pushed off him. She sat up in the bed and the sheets fell off her, revealing her naked beauty to him. She saw him quickly look away and she sighed, "Naruto look at me."

"Look at me damn it," Sakura said again and waited as Naruto slowly turned to look. Sakura was smiling lovingly. "This is me," She began and let Naruto take a good look at her body. She watched his eyes wander from her face down to her naked breasts and eventually lower. She was currently kneeling, so when his eyes were looking at her nether region, she briefly split her legs a little for him to catch a quick glimpse. "I love you Naruto, I want to marry you, so please don't act like I am going to punch you the second you touch or look at me."

She leaned down and kissed him again, "We are alone in this room and when we are alone, I don't mind you touching or looking. Just don't even think about doing it in public." She threatened him by shaking her fist at him as a joke.

Naruto fearfully nodded quickly and smiled, "You bet I won't."

"Good," Sakura said and smiled. Her fingers traced his abs and she chewed her lower lip as she naughtily looked into his blue eyes. "Now what do you say to us both taking a shower together?"

Naruto lifted one of his eye brows in question and watched as Sakura slipped out of the bed and seductively walked to the bathroom. She stopped in the doorframe and looked over her shoulder, a small pout on her lips as he was still lying in bed.

"Oh! Oooooh!" Naruto suddenly shouted and slapped his forehead. He scrambled out of the bed and quickly hastened towards the bathroom, dropping his boxers on the way. "Sorry," he mumbled into her neck as he hugged her from behind and sucked on her collarbone.

Sakura moaned and rested her head against Naruto's chest as her right arm moved behind his head to grab part of his hair while her left hand grabbed Naruto's and directed it south. "Let's go," she huffed softly as his fingers carefully teased her sensitive parts.

Sometime later, both of them walked down the stairs and towards the reception desk. They returned their key and paid for the night.

"Would you like some breakfast?" The young receptionist from the night before asked them. "It is included in the price for the room."

"Really?" Sakura asked and Naruto's happy smile turned to a full blown grin. "That would be wonderful."

"Well if you would like to follow me then," the woman said and stepped out from behind her desk and turned towards a door in the far back. "I will lead you to the back of the house. The weather is so nice that we decided to serve breakfast outside on our terrace."

"Sweet," Naruto muttered and took Sakura by her hand as they followed the woman.

They were directed towards a table and sat down. They looked at their surrounding and found that they overlooked a huge backyard. Surrounding them were several more guests that were as surprised as Naruto and Sakura at the size of the property. On their table stood a small vase with a flower that neither Naruto nor Sakura had seen before. Sakura studied the plant and was surprised to find a praying mantis attached to the stem.

"Naruto look," Sakura pointed at the flower on their table. "There is a praying mantis sitting in it."

"Really? So cool," Naruto said and tried to poke the insect when he was interrupted by a strong aging voice.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you young man. A strike of a praying mantis hurts like hell and little Aiki there is one of the strongest."

"What?" Naruto asked as he turned around to look at the person that spoke. His eyes widened in surprise when a one armed man stood behind him wearing a combination of simple combat pants and shirt. "Hey you're the guy from all those wood carvings," Naruto almost shouted but was able to control his outburst.

The older man laughed and nodded, "That's right and this is my home. So what can I get you two?"

"What do you have?" Naruto asked. "And what did you mean with Aiki being the strongest. Were you talking about that tiny praying mantis?"

"Indeed I was," the man said. "You see, I was a shinobi before I lost my arm in battle. The praying mantises are my family summons and Aiki here is just pretending to be small. In truth that little bugger is huge. He likes to listen in on people's conversations and that is why he makes himself so small."

The man turned towards the insect, "Aiki go back into the backyard and play with your brethren. Eavesdropping isn't considered nice."

"Man boss you're such a spoilsport," the praying mantis growled in a squeaky voice before hopping off the flower to land on the table. The insect swiveled its head back and forth between Naruto and Sakura and studied them. "I know that smell," the insect muttered. "You two… you wouldn't happen to know a pervert and a busty blonde with legendary shitty luck? What were their names again? Oi Boss-teme, you remember them right?"

Naruto and Sakura shared a brief worried glance but were saved by the retired shinobi. "Aiki shoo! Stop pestering every guest and stop asking them whether they know the Sannin. It's not my fault you lost to that toad and slug in a drinking contest." The aging man turned back to Naruto and Sakura and smiled, "Please excuse him. Aiki is well past his glory days, just like me. He has never gotten over the fact that the two of us lost to Jiraiya and Tsunade."

"Is that where you lost your arm?" Sakura asked.

"Oh no, no, we weren't fighting. We met a long time ago during the Third Great War and neither of us was in the mood to battle it out. Jiraiya had the idea to have a drinking contest instead. Well Aiki and I shamefully lost to those two. I still think Tsunade cheated though but I could never prove it."

The man chuckled as he remembered that day, "Well it was definitely worth getting sloshed and we had some fun together, even though we were hated enemies. Kumo and Konoha…" The man muttered as his eyes became a distant look. He caught his composer and looked at his two guests, "Yeah we never really got along that well. But that's part of history now." The man chuckled and looked at the two as if he was waiting for something.

"Oh right, I forgot to tell you what we have to offer for breakfast," the retired shinobi said and laughed embarrassingly. "We have our famous all you can eat Ramen and of course I can make whatever you desire. French toast, eggs, you name it and I will get it."

"All you can eat Ramen?" Naruto whispered to himself and could feel the water in his mouth already pooling.

Sakura giggled knowing that Naruto was fantasizing about the Ramen and turned to the man. "We'll have the Ramen."

"R-really?" Naruto asked in amazement as Sakura's words registered with him. "Y-you're going to let me have Ramen for breakfast? All you can eat? And you're even trying it yourself?"

Sakura nodded and smiled. "Sure why not, it makes you happy."

"I fucking love you even more now," Naruto blurted out and hugged Sakura.

"Whoa easy," the retired shinobi chuckled. "Someone must really love Ramen here. I'll bring out your first bowls right away."

"Thank you," Naruto shouted after the retreating old man and started up a small conversation with Sakura.

"Well, well, we meet again," a dark voice said and a person sat down at Naruto's and Sakura's table. "What a coincidence to run into you two."

Sakura lifted her eye brow while Naruto crossed his arms, "And what can we do for you?"

"Oh it's nothing really," the Kiri nuke-nin said and smiled as his eyes wandered up and down Sakura's figure.

Naruto growled in a harsh tone, "If you think she is the only one that can kill with one hit… think again!"

"Take it easy man," the Kiri ninja muttered and looked at Naruto. "Name's Suzuki."

"Naruto."

"And her?"

"None of your fucking business," Naruto growled again.

"It's Sakura and I believe you should leave now mister Suzuki, former member of the Seven Swordsman." Sakura said as her eyes narrowed in a warning.

The Mist ninja chuckled and stood. "Thanks for the chat," the shinobi said and added quietly. "Enjoy breakfast; it will be your last."

"You wish," Naruto muttered as his eyes were glued to the back of the Mist shinobi. Once the missing-nin was gone, Naruto turned to Sakura. "So he is one of them after all? How'd you know?"

"Remember how I told you that I looked at Tsunade-sama's bingo book?" Sakura saw him nod and she continued. "When he told us his name, I remembered. Suzuki, former member of the Seven Swordsman of the Mist, youngest member since the creation of the elite squad, and on par with Zabuza Momochi's lust for blood." Sakura quoted out of the bingo book. "He is a very dangerous shinobi Naruto-kun."

"Don't worry," Naruto said and took her hand into his. "At least now we know for sure that he is coming after us. Too bad for him," Naruto said and smirked. "He has no idea what he is getting himself into."

Sakura smiled weakly and agreed with Naruto but wasn't all too sure herself.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"BUNTA! Where the hell are you, you mangy frog?" Aiki bellowed.

A shadow grew steadily in size in front of the massive praying mantis and Aiki took a few steps back. And in a massive eruption, Gamabunta landed in front of the insect and puffed on his pipe before blowing the smoke into the insect's giant head. "I am a toad you grasshopper cast out."

"Bloody amphibian," Aiki grumbled as the smoke quickly dissipated.

"What do you want Aiki? Came to get your ass handed to you again? I'll get the slug while you get the sake," Bunta mocked and puffed on his pipe once more.

Aiki's mandibles clicked in anger, "No you fool. I came to ask you something."

The giant toad was silent for a bit before exhaling the smoke into the air. He tapped with his pipe against his other arm in thought as he sat hunched on his hind legs. "Alright what do you want to know?"

"That pervert Jiraiya and that Tsunade, did they pass on their summoning contracts?"

Gamabunta's relaxed posture suddenly tensed as his webbed hand went for his kodachi, "Why do you want to know?"

"I was just at my master's Inn and there I met a young man and a young woman. He was blond with strange markings on his cheeks while she had unusual pink hair. They smelled like," Aiki was interrupted as he had to dodge a swing of Bunta's short sword.

"BUNTA STOP!"

Gamabunta slowly sheathed his sword and looked at his snout as a tiny toad sat on top of him. "What do you want Pa? Why did you stop me from slicing that grasshopper in twine?"

"Son, he is a praying mantis and I want to know why he came here," Pa answered and turned around to face the giant green insect. "It's been a while Aiki-kun. How is your mother?"

"Hello Elder-san. Elder Ma-chan is well; she has been hanging around rose bushes lately." Aiki responded in respect.

"Aiki-kun could you please explain yourself; why did you come here and why do you want to know if we the toads have a new summoner?" Pa asked carefully completely ignoring the rose bush comment knowing that it was a ploy from Aiki to ask more questions in return.

"Like I said, I met a blond man that had your smell on him and a pink woman that smelled of the slugs. They instantly reminded me of that boob monster Tsunade and the pervert Jiraiya. I didn't get a chance to question them further because my Master was upset with me eavesdropping on his hotel guests."

"And what would you do with that information?" Pa asked in concern. "Would you tell your Master?"

Aiki's head swiveled in the typical insect like fashion and his mandibles clicked slightly as he was deep in thought. "I don't know."

"Then my young mantis, I am afraid that you have to leave us without receiving answers," Pa replied and waited.

"Alright fine, I will keep it to myself," Aiki roared in frustration. "But I need to know. I need to know if I am still sane."

Pa smiled and Gamabunta chuckled, "Very well Aiki-kun. Considering the man you described is traveling with a pink haired woman, it appears that those two are indeed Naruto and Sakura."

"So they are the new summoners and keepers of the toad and slug contracts?" Aiki asked. "What are they doing in Lightning Country? I imagine they are Leaf shinobi?"

"That is the question indeed. Why are Naruto-kun and Sakura-chan in Lightning Country?" Pa muttered deep in thought. "Any news on the rumors we've been hearing Bunta?"

"None Pa, with Jiraiya dead, Naruto is the only one that could tell us of what is happening in Konoha." Bunta replied "But considering the rumors that Naruto killed Tsunade and Sakura…"

"Stop right there Bunta," Pa said and smiled. "The rumors say that Naruto killed Tsunade and Sakura?"

"That is correct," Bunta replied wondering what the Elder was thinking.

"It appears these rumors are false since Aiki says he met both of them together," Pa replied. "We need to talk to the slugs and find out if they know anything. They should know if one or both of their summoners have died. And if all else fails, we can always reverse summon them to us and ask them directly."

"_We probably should do that regardless,"_ Bunta quietly thought.

Aiki listened interestingly to Pa's muttering and spoke up after realizing he had outstayed his welcome in the toad realm. "I will take my leave then. As promised, I will keep the identity of the new summoners a secret."

"Thank you Aiki-kun and say hello to your mother for me," Pa said and watched the giant praying mantis shrink and vanish in a puff of smoke. "Bunta I want you to head to the slug realm and find answers. I don't like this. I have a bad feeling about these rumors. And why the hell are Naruto and Sakura in Lightning Country?"

"You think they are trying to meet up with the Hachibi?" Bunta asked.

"I highly doubt it," Pa responded in thought. "But it could be a possibility. Now go Bunta, hurry back here as soon as you can."

"Right Pa, see you later." Bunta grumbled and vanished in a puff of smoke after Pa had jumped of Bunta's snout.

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"Nara Shikamaru!"

"Troublesome," Shikamaru muttered as he lay on top of his clan's roof and studied the clouds lazily pass by.

"Get your lazy butt down here," Shikamaru's mother yelled from down below. "You have a visitor!"

"_Troublesome_," Shikamaru thought it this time and slowly dragged himself upright. He jumped, well sort of fell off the roof, only to land in front of Shino. "Oh shit Shino it's you." Shikamaru motioned with his head for Shino to follow quickly.

Once they reached Shikamaru's room and the Nara activated privacy seals, he nodded to his Aburame friend. "What is it Shino? Did something happen?"

"No," Shino replied sounding uninterested. "I have come to you to inform you that I have finished breeding a sizeable colony for our organization."

Shikamaru was impressed, "Excellent work Shino. You surpassed your own estimate in the length it would take for you to grow the proper size of the Manticora hive."

"That is correct. Due to the lack of missions recently, I was able to spend more chakra into forcing the Manticora hive to copulate faster."

"Excellent," Shikamaru nodded. "In your opinion Shino, did we really safe some time?"

Without hesitation Shino's unemotional voice escaped the cloak wearing Aburame, "No. In order to ensure a useful continuation of this hive, I will have to split my chakra between my kikai bugs and these Manticora bugs. Reproduction will take longer now and could be a dangerous setback if a large portion of the hive were to be destroyed."

"I understand," Shikamaru nodded and pulled out a Shogi board and set it up between himself and Shino. Without asking if Shino wanted to play, Shikamaru started the game and waited for Shino's move.

Shino didn't let Shikamaru wait for long and the Aburame moved his first Shogi piece into position. "When will the organization meet again?"

"The sooner one of your females attach to each of us the better," Shikamaru muttered and froze midair wanting to place a Shogi piece when he saw a small brown bug crawl up the back of his hand. Shikamaru smiled, "But the resistance shouldn't meet until after Temari's and mine wedding. Since all of us will be present, we can avoid drawing unwanted attention by not meeting before hand. If the possibility arises that you can attach your bugs to the members without them noticing prior our next official meeting, take it but be careful."

"Very well," Shino replied and moved his next Shogi piece. "Do you have any other wishes or plans?"

"None," Shikamaru muttered as he tried to decipher Shino's strategy. "Actually I have one question," Shikamaru spoke up as he moved another piece. "Would it be possible to create secondary hives across the village? Hives that could be self sustaining but still listen to your every command?"

Shino looked up in what seemed to be surprise and nodded in understanding. "It is possible, difficult but possible. Do you wish for me to do so?"

"Yes that would be great," Shikamaru responded and deactivated the privacy seals in his room as the two finished the game of Shogi.

* * *

**A/N (part 2):** Well what do you all think? I know the entire Naru/Saku marriage thingy was meh but it just popped out and I actually liked the way I wrote it. To me the entire scene is actually believable. *shrugs with shoulders*

I think the next chapter demands more Kyuubi. There simply hasn't been enough Kyuubi scenes.

Oh and while all of you read this chapter, I have to regretfully inform you all that my Zombie minions are rioting in the streets of Germany because the Oktoberfest beer has run out. I pointed them all towards Cincinnati, since I know there is the largest Oktoberfest celebrations in the US and why not start in that city to convert all to the Naru/Saku way?

Also I have to regretfully inform **KingKakashi** that his two European Lieutenants, he calls them Generals but they don't deserve that rank for they were too weak. They believed that Naru/Hina imagery would suffice in stopping the Zombie Minions, which might be true when it comes to the usual zombie bum but sadly I decided to enter the battlefield myself and quickly overran their positions. **I'm Solo** and **Naruto the Highlander** you two have fought valiantly but in the end they failed.

On a different note but a less happier one, a fellow fan named **Wruth** from Norway has gone missing. He used to leave wonderful reviews and I hope he is still around. If so, leave a bloody review asswipe. :-P

Leaving reviews counts for the rest of you readers as well. Simple comments, critiques, and/or thumbs up are welcomed and considered.

Thank you, over and out.


	7. Completion

**Ahoy! New update. I keep myself short because I am quite exhausted from today's workday. Enjoy the chapter. Sorry not going to comment on a few reviews, next time. Promise!**

* * *

**F****ū****rinkazan**

Chapter – 6

"Completion"

The day Naruto and Sakura had been confronted by the Kumo Anbu had gone by without further interruptions and problems. When night had fallen over the land once again, they had walked off the side of the road and deeper into the nearby forest and lit a campfire. They spent the night huddled together by the fire as they watched the star filled sky above in mutual silence.

Their next day held no excitement as they woke to the rising sun and the chirping birds. They found a small stream of water and cleaned themselves as best as they could before eating a quick breakfast that consisted of dried meat and rice balls. They ensured their little campfire was truly put out by tossing dirt on top of the smoldering ashes before they continued on their journey to the small farming village.

The entire day had been filled with the scorching sun hammering down upon the two shinobi and the roads leading towards their destination were barren of wayward travelers. The crickets were busy communicating with one another and only fell silent for the brief periods of time it took for Naruto and Sakura to pass them. So it came to no surprise that a thunderstorm announced itself in the wee hours of the evening.

They had stopped by a small gathering of pine trees and were ultimately forced to surrender their serene spot between the trees in the search of proper cover from the impending rain. They raced across the road that led them through the endless grass fields in hopes of finding an Inn or a farm to seek shelter. Eventually, as the storm neared, the wind drastically increased and lightning flashed in the distance, illuminating the pitch black sky like angry claws wanting to tear apart the hot humid air.

And as the storm cell caught up with them, they spied a lone larch tree sitting of the side of the road and considering that the massive tree with its heavy branches was the only form of cover, both Naruto and Sakura raced towards it as the heavy rain drops started hitting them.

"Well this just sucks," Naruto muttered as he held a shivering Sakura in his arms while trying to tell his own body to stop quivering from the wetness and cold that clung to them both.

He rubbed Sakura's arms gently in order to give her the much needed warmth from the friction between his hands and her bare arms. But even that thoughtful idea was destroyed the moment the torrential downpour increased further as the two stood arm in arm under the canopy of the large larch tree.

"N-Naruto I d-d-don't think it's such a s-s-smart idea to be huddling under a tree at this moment," Sakura stuttered, too cold to speak clearly.

"What? Why?"

Sakura tried to roll with her eyes as she continued to shiver, "Tall objects attract lightning, especially trees since they are filled with water."

"Oh I think you mean that they are filled with chloroplast," Naruto grinned and increased his rubbing of her arms. "Trees really aren't filled with water. They just transport it via a capillary system from their roots to the top of the crown. There isn't really water as we would define it as water. The wood is simply saturated with it."

Sakura blinked up at him in stupid amazement and frowned, "How the hell do you even know about chloroplast and how do you know about the inner workings of a tree but NOT know anything about the dangers of hiding under one during a thunderstorm?"

Naruto grinned sheepishly and looked at her with a serious expression, "I don't know."

"B-Baka," Sakura muttered quietly and pressed her frame even closer to Naruto. "Naruto I am so cold."

"Well I'd suggest we take our clothes off and press our bodies together to stay warm, just like Iruka-sensei taught us in the Academy." Naruto said with a short laugh escaping his lips. "But what good would us do that? We'd still be standing in the rain."

"A kingdom for Yamamoto-sensei's Mokuton ability," Sakura smiled weakly as she remembered her substitute sensei once growing a house for their team to sleep in.

"Oh-oh! I just got an idea," Naruto suddenly shouted. "Sakura-chan you are one smart woman."

"What did I do?" Sakura asked as she looked up into Naruto's grinning face. Her questioning stare turned to an uneasy frown as her experience told her that this certain grin that Naruto sported meant nothing good. "Okay what crazy notion did you come up with?"

"I'll create a shelter out of my Shadow Clones," Naruto grinned as if he won the lottery.

Sakura blinked several times as a silence hung between two. She suddenly started laughing out loud, "Oh Naruto that is so silly. It will never work."

"Oh yes it will," Naruto said and slipped out of Sakura's warming embrace. His hands instantly formed the cross sign and he yelled out, "Tajū Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"

A mass of similar soaked Naruto clones appeared and the clones instantly started transforming into support struts and wooden planks. And as the clones built out of themselves a cover for Naruto and Sakura to use, Naruto began to strip out of his soaked clothing. "C'mon Sakura-chan don't lag behind."

Sakura stared at the mass of clones become some form of a crooked cover from the rain and could only shake her head in dismay at Naruto's ingenuity in his usage for his clones. Still dumbfounded, Sakura unconsciously started opening her shirt to follow Naruto's example in stripping out of their wet clothes.

She shrieked in surprise when a naked Naruto ran up to her and picked her up bridal style and walk with her in his arms under their makeshift cover. His hands were shaking from the cold as he helped Sakura undress. He quickly spread their wet clothing out and hoped they would dry by morning before telling a few left over clones to stand in front of the opening of their cover and transform into a barrier to keep the warming air from escaping and offer more protection.

He quickly was by Sakura's side again as she stood naked with her arms wrapped around herself trying to stay warm. He smiled and quickly did a few hand signs and slammed his hands into the wet grass. He turned his head to look up at her, "Ok we can lay down now. I dried the grass and earth and it isn't wet anymore."

Sakura nodded and she lay down on top of Naruto as he was lying with his back in the grass. Her hands briefly touched the ground to check if Naruto had spoken the truth and smiled weakly, "How did you do that?"

"Oh it's a jutsu Ero-sennin created and taught me," Naruto said and tried to cover as much as possible of Sakura's naked form with his arms and hands. "Um, you know I like you having on top but maybe I should be the one this time."

"Pervert," Sakura muttered as she watched Naruto lecherously grin, knowing fair well what he was thinking. However, she nodded and quickly found herself beneath Naruto's body. Both closed their eyes as they gave each other warmth and Sakura started humming a small tune as her fingers played with Naruto's wet hair as they both listened to the heavy rain and thunder roll across the night sky."

Hours later, the thunder still boomed above their heads and lightning flashes illuminated the dark sky and cast dark eerie shadows through the opening of their make shift cover. Inside, both Naruto and Sakura had fallen asleep while lying in their arms and had missed out on the spectacular light show of the thunderstorm. And slowly as the night wound down and the storm cell moved on in its travel across Lightning Country, Sakura shifted in her sleep and an arm accidently hit one of the support struts that held the conception of a shack upright. A puff and following smoke announced the dispelling of the transformed shadow clone and Naruto's eyes shot open as the information reached his brain. And in a tumbling sound of shadow clones dispelling and rising smoke, Naruto and Sakura suddenly found themselves butt naked under the larch tree once more.

Naruto groaned loudly as the information from his many clones entered his mind and Sakura jumped to her feet as the sudden draft had forced her awake. She blinked her sleep away and realized that she was exposed and even though it was still dead at night, instincts took over and she shrieked and tried to cover herself up by hiding behind a confused Naruto.

"Naruto what happened? Why did your clones dispel?" She asked panicky.

"Uh… I… I think you hit one of them during the sleep," Naruto mumbled rubbing his temples.

"I did?" Sakura asked in disbelief and quickly scurried for their clothing as they now lay in the wet grass. She checked them to see if they were dry and breathed a sigh of relief, "I am sorry Naruto-kun. On the bright side, the clothes are semi-dry and it finally stopped raining."

"Don't worry about it Sakura-chan," Naruto muttered and stood up. He rubbed his arms as he shivered, "Damn it's cold tonight."

"We'll we're naked," Sakura said and handed Naruto his clothes. "C'mon we should be able to dry them with the water removal jutsu from the Academy now that it stopped raining."

"But we're already naked," Naruto whispered into her ear as he hugged her from behind. He nibbled on her ear and placed some gentle kisses on her shoulders.

Sakura sighed and slowly turned around to kiss Naruto, "Sweetie not now. I am tired, I am cold, and it is dirty here."

Naruto continued to trace soft kisses along her shoulders and neck as his hands gracefully roamed over her body. "It'll get you warm though Sakura-chan. I'll make sure you wake up and don't worry about the dirt, we still have our clothes to create a blanket from."

She whimpered as Naruto suckled and tugged on her earlobe and she pressed into him, their sexes meeting. "N-Naruto," Sakura whimpered his name in a weak threat. "Please!"

He let go off her earlobe and kissed her lips before breaking off, "Alright sweetie. I am sorry."

Flushed, Sakura looked up into his face, "I am sorry too."

Both of them used their academy jutsu to dry their clothes before dressing again. They stood next to each other under the lurch tree and looked out over the grassy plains in which they stood. To the west the thunderstorm continued to unleash its rage, while in the east the clear sky slowly appeared through thinning clouds and the first hints of light announced its presence by highlighting the distant horizon in a very weak orange blue.

"Well we are awake," Naruto said as he turned to Sakura. "What do you say to us leaving? With the storm behind us and dawn only a couple of hours away we might as well try and reach that village early in the afternoon instead of this evening."

"Sure," Sakura nodded and hefted their travel pack onto her back. "Let's go."

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX****XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Naruto and Sakura walked along the road through the ocean of grass and with the first light of dawn, fog slowly rose from the wet soggy fields all around them. It was a magnificent sight to behold as the dense white fog rolled through the countryside and before they knew what happened, Naruto and Sakura were caught in the middle of the natural event.

"Naruto," Sakura whispered to him to alert him to the fact that the fog was saturated with chakra.

"Kirigakure no jutsu," Naruto whispered back in recognition. "Get ready to split."

Sakura nodded and before either of them could do much more, a faint sound of something flying through the air entered their ears and the two Leaf shinobi jumped out of the way. Sakura jumped and dodged to the left while Naruto stayed to the right and both bore witness as they watched not one giant sword but two intersect the point which they had just vacated and a feeling of recognition dawned upon the two.

"Naruto!" Sakura called out to the blond.

"I know," Naruto growled and formed a seal. "Fuuton: Great Breakthrough!"

The mist instantly cleared around Naruto and Sakura in a radius of several hundred meters and there in front of them not that far away stood the nuke-nin from Kiri with his two large swords held lightly in his hands. A sound of two more swords unsheathing alerted Naruto and Sakura of another two attackers behind them. And as they briefly looked over their shoulder, they saw the two Kiri nuke-nin from the other night that had sat at the table with the former Swordsman of the Mist.

"I have to applaud you for surviving that attack," the Swordsman spoke. "You two are indeed quite skilled, more so than you let others believe."

Naruto and Sakura quickly stood back to back as he faced the Swordsman while Sakura kept the two other Mist shinobi in her sight. "Would it be too much to ask you to leave us alone?" Naruto asked and hoped for an answer that he knew he'd never receive. His hand itched for a kunai but all of them were safely sealed away in their little book and he silently cursed at being over cautious.

The Swordsman laughed loudly, "And miss out on the bounty on your heads? I don't think so!"

"What bounty? There isn't one on our heads you stupid dimwit," Naruto yelled in anger.

"Naruto!" Sakura warned him quietly. "Don't needlessly piss him off."

"Fuck him," Naruto growled and felt the Kyuubi within him stir him on as his anger at being attacked increased further.

"Naruto…" Sakura whispered to him but her voice faded away and he panicked as he was pulled into his subconscious.

Naruto found himself inside his mindscape. He stood on the island underneath the Sakura tree and was face to face with the towering demon, "Why the fuck did you pull me in? Sakura-chan needs me!"

The demon chuckled darkly and slightly pulled back. The Kyuubi's head rose into the air and his fur was tossed violently around as his nine tails swayed in the strong wind. **"This is your doing Naruto,"** the demon's voice rumbled. **"The wind, the storm that is brewing in the distance, you coming here; this is all your doing boy. For once I can claim innocence."**

"What the hell are you talking about?" Naruto screamed in anger. "Let me go back! Sakura and I, we're under attack!"

"**The time has come Naruto,"** the Kyuubi rumbled and closed his blood red eyes. The mighty demon fox hummed a violent red as the demon summoned forth his powers and when the Kyuubi's eyes opened, they radiated with power. **"Come closer boy!"**

"What the hell," Naruto shouted in anger but obeyed. "Hurry up!"

The demon chuckled and watched the Blond step closer and as Naruto stood before the demon, it let go of a mighty roar that could shake the earth, raise the oceans, and crush mountains. And as Naruto watched in fascination, the mighty Nine-Tailed Demon Fox shrunk, its powers compacting into a smaller form and when the transformation was complete, the demon that was now the size of one of the largest Inuzuka hounds, stood at the same height as Naruto.

An eye brow slowly rose in question as Naruto watched the demon's transformation and when he was able to look the Kyuubi straight into the eye, Naruto couldn't wait any longer. "You done, you pulled me in to show me that you can become tiny? Are you out of your fucking mind?" Not answering, a teeth bearing grin crossed the demon's visage and in a low growl, the jaws lunged forward and its teeth sunk into Naruto's throat and shoulder.

Naruto roared in pain as the Kyuubi's chakra was forced into his body by the demon. Naruto felt like he was being cooked alive from the inside out as the chakra entered his system. He felt his canines lengthen, his hands turning claw like, and his regular vision turned tinted with a barely recognizable red hue. He felt his bones lengthen and reform, his muscles growing and compacting around the changing frame, and as he felt himself change into something he never wanted to become, his pained roars turned to ones of rage and fury. And as more and more of the pure demonic chakra entered his system, Naruto's pain slowly subsided only to vanish all together a short time later.

In a squelching sound, the Kyuubi tore free of Naruto and roared in triumph. **"It is done Naruto. We are one now. Go back to your woman, protect her, the final changes to your chakra system has been completed. Use my powers as you wish. Lay waste to all those that dare stand against us. Become me, become the new Kyuubi no Kitsune!"** Kyuubi grinned in victory as he stood face to face with a mirror image of himself that now was Naruto.

"Fucking demon," the second Nine-Tailed muttered using Naruto's voice. The second Fox suddenly collapsed to the ground as blue chakra leaked out of its blood red fur, the massive frame of the second Kyuubi vanished in a bright blue sphere that so much resembled a gigantic Rasengan.

The sphere pulsated and collapsed in on itself only to reveal a kneeling Naruto as he struggled to his feet. His hand clutched the gaping wound that oozed his life fluids like a waterfall and his eyes widened in surprise when the wound sizzled with red and blue chakra and within the blink of an eye, his wound closed leaving behind healthy skin.

"Naruto! Naruto!" Sakura frantically shouted in concern as the Blond suddenly collapsed and thrashed out of control. "Not again," Sakura muttered in worry and fear. Her instincts told her to drop down to her knees and hug him, to comfort him through yet another of his spasm attacks but her mind screamed at her to pay attention and to protect him and her from the nuke-nin. _"Why is this happening now? He was fine for three days and he promised…"_

Sakura was brought out of her thoughts as the former Swordsman chuckled darkly, "Looks like the Blond one is of no concern to us boys."

The other two Mist nuke-nin laughed and Sakura didn't like the gleam in their eyes as they ravaged her as their eyes traveled up and down Sakura's body. She could tell that they were enjoying this, she saw it in their eyes, how they slowly undressed her in their minds and a cold terrifying fear crept up her spine. She shuddered visibly, which only widened their perverted grin as they slowly edged closer to her.

Sakura carefully spied over her shoulder to make sure the Swordsman was still far enough behind her and breathed in relief at seeing the man still standing at his spot unmoving. The man smiled and nodded towards her, "I won't be fighting you my dear. Careful boys," he said as he addressed his two companions. "Don't forget what she did to the Kusa-nin. Don't make me join this fight in order to subdue her."

"Yeah Boss," one of them said and giggled as he licked the blade of his short sword.

"_Guess I am a tiny bit lucky,"_ Sakura thought as she quickly pulled on her gloves and got into a ready stance. She spent one final thought on her Blond companion and lover before giving her full attention to the two nuke-nin. _"Naruto please… I need you."_

Sakura's eyes narrowed as they stalked closer and she cycled her chakra through her body as her eyes studied each of the two shinobi, carefully looking for signs of weaknesses to exploit. The shinobi to her left approached her with carefully measured steps and watchful eyes. Sakura could read his body language as one of cautionary reserve and figured that this guy was the cautions one of the two, rather prone to dodge an attack than meeting it head on.

The second shinobi, however, was an entire different story. He licked his blade in anticipation of drawing blood and Sakura could see the mental degeneration in the man's eyes. The crazed ninja was carefully approaching her just like his partner was; however, he had so many openings that Sakura's fist was itching to smash that perverted leer off his face.

Sakura shifted and added weight to her right foot, preparing herself to rush forward and pounce on the crazed Mist shinobi but just as she was about to lunge forward, she realized that her target's left knee twitched. Cursing to herself in silence as she realized that they were setting her up, she decided to make them think that they had fooled her. She charged forward and jumped into the air as she cocked her right arm to land a punch on the crazed Mist ninja.

And as she descended, the shinobi flashed away just as she had suspected and Sakura smirked, knowing farewell that the other would be right behind her, trying to slice her unprotected back open. So instead of smashing her fist into the ground, she sent her chakra into her left foot and landed on her hands as she performed a front flip and swinging her legs after her in the process. And as she flipped, she saw the surprise painted in the second Mist shinobi's face as he raised his sword in order to strike at her.

"Too slow," Sakura called out and as the full force of her left heel connected with the man's chin, the shinobi's head snapped back in a bone crushing sound. The body fell to the ground where it stood as blood oozed out of eyes, ears, nose, and mouth. Sakura continued her front flip and quickly turned to face the crazed shinobi that she had aimed for from the beginning of the short fight.

The man's face paled as he watched his partner fall in a mass of dead limbs and he roared in fury, "YOU KILLED HIM! YOU KILLED MY BROTHER!"

"Tsk so what," Sakura muttered and charged the man. She couldn't believe it herself, she couldn't believe how her body just reacted to her will, and for the first time, Sakura finally realized how much she had truly improved under Tsunade's tutelage.

"WHORE I AM GOING TO RAPE YOU! KILL YOU! AND RAPE YOU AGAIN!" The shinobi screamed as he raced towards Sakura with his sword held in a one thrust striking form that left him brutally open to any attack.

Without answering the crazed shinobi, Sakura met the man head on. The ninja cackled in insanity as his sword drove forward to skewer Sakura, however, he failed to realize that Sakura was smiling and as his sword connected with her, she blew apart in flower peddles. Stunned, the shinobi stopped his charge and formed the hand seal to break out of the Genjutsu. His eyes widened in fear when he heard Sakura whisper into his ear, "You're already dead!"

And as those words registered, the crazed shinobi spit up blood as it spilled into his mouth. He slowly turned, clutching his heart with his free hand while loosely holding on to his sword. "Bitch what did you do to me?"

He tried to raise his sword but Sakura quickly jabbed two fingers into his arm before it fell limp to the sides. "WHAT DID YOU DO TO ME?" The shinobi screamed in rage, spitting up ever more blood as Sakura turned and walked away.

She stopped and looked over her shoulder, "I killed you." And she watched the crazed shinobi fall dead where he stood, knowing she had cut his main artery with her chakra scalpel.

She froze in fear when she suddenly felt the legendary Swordsman appear before her. She felt the air leave her lungs as a strong fist pummeled into her, "Shouldn't have let your guard down Missy!"

And as Sakura staggered backwards from the impact of the Swordsman's fist, she felt another fist slam into her stomach forcing her to double over. That attack was quickly followed with a strong uppercut to her face, which forced her screaming body to straighten again. She stumbled helplessly, trying to suck in air as she felt blood slowly pooling in her mouth.

"I am far from done Pinky," the Swordsman growled and closed the distance with a quick step and a barrage of attacks impacted Sakura's stomach, preventing her from drawing in oxygen. Her vision swam and as even more hits crashed into her, her legs buckled with their vision darkening announcing the imminent fall into unconsciousness. But she wasn't given reprieve as she felt her head being grabbed between the Swordsman's massive hands and the last thing she saw was the nuke-nin's knee rushing toward her face. Sakura barely registered the blow to her face by the knee and was surrounded by blackness as her limp body collapsed to the ground.

Sakura awoke to the feeling of cold air brushing over her naked skin and she tried to open her swollen eyes in panic but they only opened in slits, restricting her field of view. She screamed in terror and tried to move but quickly found her arms were tied behind her back, while her lower legs were tied to the appropriate thigh. Tears stung her swollen eyes as they escaped their housing and Sakura tried to rob and wiggle away.

"No! No! No! No!" Sakura wailed as she tried to flee from what was about to happen to her or already happened, she simply didn't know. "N-Naruto!" She wept unable to control the fear and panic stirring within her.

"Shut it bitch," the Swordsman growled and kicked Sakura into her sides as she lay in the grass. The Mist-nin's two swords slammed into the ground and trapped Sakura's head in between the flat sides of the blades. Sakura whimpered as she felt the shinobi's hot breath on her face, "I disposed of your friend just as you did of mine. You're all mine now."

Sakura felt his tongue lick her cheek and one of her breasts was suddenly roughly cupped by one of his hands. Her fear and whimpers turned to angry shouts as she tried to fight him off.

A fist suddenly slammed into her face, "Stop fighting it and you might actually enjoy it."

"N-Naruto," Sakura wept calling for him as she felt her body being explored by the nuke-nin's violent hands and tongue.

"Please," Sakura begged and struggled. Her wrists and legs were hurting as she tried to break the restraints with which they were tied together. "You promised…"

"Shut up you bitch," the Swordsman growled and slammed another fist into Sakura's face. Tiny whimpers filled with hopelessness escaped Sakura and she stopped moving as she surrendered herself over to the inevitable.

"That's much better," the shinobi growled and Sakura suddenly felt her panties being ripped off her.

"NO!" Sakura suddenly screamed with renewed energy and spirit as she realized she hadn't been violated yet. "NARUTO!"

"I told you to shut up," the ninja growled and punched Sakura's face repeatedly until the pinkette fell unconscious. "Finally I can enjoy this bitch without her constant whimpering."

The man dropped his pants and positioned himself in front of Sakura's entrance. "What the hell?" the shinobi froze as he felt a chakra spike appear behind him. His head snapped around and his eyes widened in surprise, "Impossible!"

Naruto's prone form was engulfed by red chakra as one of the arms pushed the limp body up from the ground. Blood red demonic eyes snapped open and stared at the Mist nuke-nin. A low growl erupted from Naruto's throat as the Blond stood and his vision moved between the naked and tied down form of Sakura and the Swordsman.

A bloodcurdling roar announced Naruto's rage and anger as the Kyuubi's chakra cloak solidified around him. Four large chakra tails swayed angrily behind him and with a sudden twitch of his muscles, Naruto closed the distance between him and the Swordsman in the matter of a blink of an eye.

"What the hell are you?" The Swordsman screamed as he blocked one of Naruto's claw strikes with his swords. "I fucking slit your throat… Shit!"

Naruto's jaw opened and a ball of red chakra was summoned in front of him and with a demonic roar a beam of red chakra tore apart the landscape leaving behind a kilometer long gash of destruction and burned grass. Naruto's head titled to the side as the Swordsman appeared in a Mist shunshin to Naruto's left side. The Mist-nin's swords came crashing down upon Naruto and tried to slice him in half but two of Naruto's tails shot forth and blocked the strikes with ease.

Eyes wide in surprise and fear, the nuke-nin flash stepped away to get some safe distance between him and Naruto and before one of the tails could skewer him. The nin quickly flashed through hand signs and inhaled, "Suiton: Mizurappa!"

A wall of water shot towards Naruto but never reached him as Naruto opened his jaws and roared, vaporizing the stream of water in the process. "Impossible! Just with the power of his voice he dismantled my jutsu," the nuke-nin muttered as Naruto's chakra enhanced shockwave from his roar slammed into the Kiri-nin.

The shinobi blinked and when his eyes settle back upon Naruto, he realized that Naruto was no longer there. And in that instance, Naruto flashed into existence next to the nuke-nin and slammed one of his clawed fists into the nuke-nin's stomach.

Literally folding in half from the powerful punch, the Swordsman coughed up blood as he flew backwards. His body impacted and tumbled lifelessly across the field and came to rest in a crumbled pile of limbs and blood. Groaning in pain, the Mist-nin struggled to stand as he coughed up even more blood. His vision swam as he looked at the Kyuubified Naruto, a terrifying fear paralyzing his mind as Naruto's low demonic growls echoed over the landscape.

It was then that the Swordsman realized that a red miasma was escaping Naruto's mouth with each breath that the Blond took. The demonic blood red mist slowly spread out across the fields, killing and lighting on fire everything it touched. The lush green grass withered, turning brown, decaying in a mere instance before turning black and going up in flames. The miasma reached one of the dead nuke-nin and the body began to bloat as the skin grew pustules from the heat and in a sickening blast, the body exploded as the liquefied organs and blood superheated.

The Swordsman of the Mist grew sick to his stomach at the horrifying image before him as the landscape around him was turned to something akin to what he believed would look like Hell. His shaky hand touched his caved in chest and the shinobi winced in pain upon contact, "Shit I can count myself lucky to still be alive. If it hadn't been for Kisame-sensei's rigorous training, I would have been a goner with that hit."

He quickly took several steps backwards as the red miasma encroached upon him and within the blink of an eye the spot he had just stood in went up in flames. He saw insects scramble away in fear from the red mist, only to see the many stragglers turn to crispy cinder. Taking ever quicker steps back, his eyes focused on Naruto, who stood still with his vision and attention directed towards Sakura. The Swordsman followed Naruto's gaze and wickedly smiled as he saw a single green spot that was untouched by the miasma, and in the center of the small patch of green grass laid Sakura unconscious, naked, and bound. Grinning evilly, the Swordsman flashed through hand signs and vanished only to reappear by Sakura's side.

A low threatening growl alerted him of Naruto's realization and reaction. The Swordsman quickly raised his swords above Sakura and looked at Naruto. He smirked as he saw Naruto stop his charge, "It appears this bitch is your weakness. Now transform back and let me go, or else I'll kill her." In order to get his point across and hoping the Blond shinobi would be reasonable, the Swordsman lowered one of his swords and carefully left a short nick on Sakura's left cheek.

A deep growl rumbled out of Naruto's throat as the four tailed Kyuubi version of Naruto appeared to be smirking. The jaws dropped open and another ball of chakra formed in front of Naruto. The Swordsman's eyes widened as he realized what Naruto was about to do. Cursing to himself, he raised his swords in order to strike at Sakura. "Can't believe he is willing to vaporize her just to get to me," he muttered and watched his sword decent upon the prone form of Sakura.

And as the sword sliced into Sakura, the Swordsman felt the heat of Naruto's chakra beam nearing. Without a moment's hesitation, the Swordsman flashed through hand signs as he felt the heat burning away at his exposed skin and he vanished from sight only to reappear badly burned but still alive just outside the area that was covered by the demonic mist.

Breathing heavily he turned around to look into the decaying patch of landscape and saw a second scar adorn the fields where Naruto's chakra blast had torn apart the ground. He whistled quietly at seeing the size of the cone shaped scar. It was bigger than the first attack and reached quite far into the distance. He looked for Naruto but couldn't see him anywhere. "Shit, where did he go?"

A low growl, very close and behind him, alerted him to the danger. He turned around to face Naruto and his body was hit numerous times by Naruto's relentless fists, powerful enough to drive him into the ground. He felt his body crumbling underneath Naruto's endless assaults and unconsciousness took him as his life was literally beaten out of him. And as he lay dying and unconscious, he failed to realize that Naruto had reverted back to his human self and continuously pounded his fists into the Swordsman's face while screaming in rage and anger.

Nearby, inside a cocoon of red energies that suddenly dissipated, Sakura's eyes fluttered open and her vision was filled of a red mist drifting leisurely around her, surrounding her completely. Remembering what was about to happen to her, that she was about to be raped, she screamed and tried to scramble away from the danger that no longer was there. Her screams fell silent as she realized the Swordsman of the Mist was gone and that her restraints had been cut. Hope filled her chest as she looked around for Naruto.

"Naruto," She called out quietly but she didn't receive an answer.

Sakura looked around her, trying to find her clothes that the Mist nuke-nin had ripped off her but couldn't find anything as the red mist was as thick as fog. Slowly standing, Sakura hugged her naked self and carefully trudged forward as she softly called Naruto's name once more. Still receiving no answer, Sakura pushed forward into the demonic fog and looked down at her bare feet when she heard the sound akin of paper crumbling below her feet and her eyes widened in surprise at finding the lush green fields burned to black cinders and fell apart into ashes.

"What happened here?" Sakura muttered softly and kept looking from side to side in the hopes of finding a way out of this fog. She yelped in surprise as she fell into what seemed to be a hole, and through the fog Sakura could tell that she had fallen into a shallow but very large ravine. "Is this Naruto's doing?" She wondered out loud and climbed back out to continue her search.

She suddenly stumbled as her left foot hit something soft and after having caught her balance, she looked to her feet and her eyes brightened as she found her backpack. Hunching, she quickly opened the pack and removed spare clothes that she had gotten from the old Lady. Sakura quickly dressed and wondered where her sandals could be as she didn't have any spares. She tried to look at the immediate vicinity of the backpack but couldn't find them nearby. Sighing, she quickly hefted the backpack and closed her eyes in concentration.

"The chakra is so dense in this fog," Sakura hissed softly as she tried to concentrate on the nearest chakra source only to find out that the red mist surrounding her was saturated with chakra and therefore hindering her detection attempt. _"Okay I am certain that this is Naruto's, well the Kyuubi's chakra but why isn't it injuring me?"_ Sakura asked herself as she studied the demonic fog and reached out for a particular dense patch in front of her with her hand. Her fingers easily went through it but where she'd expected to receive burning pain, she felt nothing, as if she was immune to the demonic taint.

Sakura was pleasantly surprised about this discovery and as she continued her aimless stumbling through the thick fog, she tried to figure out an answer to the mystery involving her immunity. She edged through the fog for several minutes, not realizing that she was circling back to her original starting point, when Sakura suddenly stopped upon hearing distant and muffled impacts. To her these impacts reminded her of the sounds of something hard hitting soft tissue, like flesh.

Frowning, Sakura carefully edged towards the source of these flesh hammering noises. Minutes passed, minutes that felt like hours as Sakura slowly drew nearer to the disturbing sounds and her eyes widened in surprise and fear as a dark silhouette appeared through the red fog. She drew nearer and watched as the dark outline was relentlessly swinging their arms up and down upon something on the ground.

"Naruto?" Sakura called out hesitantly as she drew ever nearer. "Naruto is that you?"

She didn't receive an answer as she continued to watch the person swinging their fists. She edged closer, inch by inch and slowly more and more was revealed of the scene through the red mist. And as the dark shape turned into a kneeling Naruto, Sakura breathed a sigh of relief and quickly closed the last distance between her and the Blond.

"Naruto," Sakura called out to him softly and placed a hand on his left shoulder to get his attention, while also looking over Naruto's shoulder. She winced at seeing Naruto's fists collide in a rhythmic drum into what used to be a person's face. "Naruto it's alright, it's me. It's Sakura."

Naruto's fists stopped mid swing and Sakura could see blood, bones, and brain matter drip off his raised fists and Sakura fell to her knees and hugged him from behind as Naruto's fists returned to continue slamming into what was left of the Swordsman head. She pressed her face into his back and wept, "Naruto please stop. He's dead, you killed him. You protected me."

"S-Sakura-chan," Naruto choked out her name as if he was in a daze.

"Yes Naruto-kun it's me," Sakura hushed and tried to lower his fists and was relieved when his arms obeyed her gentle touch. "You did good Naruto. Thank you."

"S-Sakura-chan," Naruto's voice turned heavy with remorse and sadness. "I am sorry Sakura-chan. All of this is my fault. I am sorry that I couldn't protect you. I know I swore to protect you but the damn Kyuubi…"

"Naruto," Sakura called his name sweetly and tried to nudge his shoulders so he would turn around to face her. "Everything is fine, I am fine, please turn around."

Naruto slowly turned and his blue eyes were saddened with grief and the way he carried himself was one of defeat. His eyes briefly flickered up to her face before they settled on the ground again, "I am so sorry."

Sakura cupped his face in between her delicate hands and lifted his face to look at him. She warmly smiled at him, "Naruto don't be sorry."

"But what about your face, your injuries?" Naruto blurted out and tore his head out of her hands, "How can you be so calm? That-that bastard violated you! Why aren't you mad at him? I am boiling with rage just thinking about what that bastard did. I hate him; hate him for everything he did to you."

"Naruto-kun," Sakura whispered his name with sadness as she watched the Blonde's anger increase even more. "Yes that man touched and kissed me but he never got the chance to violate me, you stopped him, didn't you?"

Naruto nodded, not trusting his mouth as his fists were clenched tightly together. "Besides," Sakura started saying. "Once we clean ourselves, I can take care of my injuries. I must look hideous though," Sakura joked in hopes of lifting Naruto's spirit.

"No," he replied weakly. "You're still as beautiful as ever."

"Thank you Naruto-kun," Sakura said and wiped away a tear that had escaped one of her swollen eyes. The tear burned as it escaped her injured tear duct and she winced realizing how horrible she must be looking. Up until now, her adrenaline had kept the pain away from her but now after consciously realizing the damage to her body, more and more pain receptors flared alive and sent the information to her brain, threatening to overload her.

"Do you think you can do something about this mist Naruto?" Sakura asked him as she pulled him to his feet. "I think we should quickly leave this place but before we do, I'd like to find my sandals."

Naruto looked hesitantly around them into the mist, "Did… did I do this?"

"I believe so," Sakura replied and without hesitation her fingers interlocked with one of Naruto's grime encrusted hands. "Do you remember anything?"

"I remember yelling at the Kyuubi. I was angry with him that he pulled me inside my mind when that Mist-nin attacked. After that he bit me and… and then I saw red when I saw the nuke-nin position himself in front of you," Naruto explained. "Everything turned became clear to me and I listened, for the first time I listened to the hate and rage within me. I listened to the demon fox."

Sakura squeezed his hands reassuringly, "Naruto it's alright. It's okay to be afraid of your own powers. Tsunade-sama told me once that only fools take power for granted and only fools don't fear their power."

"Really?" Naruto asked as he stared into the thick fog. "But the Kyuubi said…"

"Wait, you can talk to the Kyuubi? W-what are you talking about? And what did you mean about him biting you? I-I thought he was sealed away, I thought that he couldn't touch you."

"Eh, well… the Kyuubi… Sakura-chan, well… He was sort of locked away in a giant cage in my mind and he tended to just snarl at me or tried to offer me his powers in order to break free of his imprisonment. He threw the occasional insult at me as well."

Sakura looked at Naruto in worry, "You said the demon was locked away… What… where is it now?"

"I did?" Naruto asked and looked away in shame, "I guess I did." He sighed, "The Kyuubi is still inside of me but the seal that contained him is no longer working. In fact it's destroyed."

"What do you mean the seal is destroyed? Naruto how can you be so calm?" Sakura shouted. "The demon could escape any second and kill you. We need to…"

Naruto chuckled, "Oh he tried that but failed. You see, he can no longer escape without killing both of us in the process."

"I-I don't understand," Sakura muttered in concern.

"It was the Yondaime Hokage," Naruto began. "The seal he created was intended to connect my chakra coils with the Kyuubi. In other words, over time I was supposed to absorb all of the Kyuubi and convert his chakra into my own. But when Sasuke nearly killed me that idiot fox tried to escape, only hastening the process of absorbing the Kyuubi's chakra, at least that's what I think what happened."

Sakura was astonished, "So the Kyuubi is dead now? But I thought you said that he bit you?"

"He isn't dead Sakura-chan," Naruto tried to explain. "He is still inside of my mind but he can no longer harm me. I think I completely absorbed him earlier when I passed out. He bit me and afterwards he said that the process was complete. I think I can use my Jinchuuriki powers to its fullest now without going berserk," Naruto suggested thoughtfully.

"Naruto, try to promise me that you won't do so. Please don't try to use the Kyuubi's powers."

"Of course Sakura-chan," Naruto said and looked at her. "But what should I do about this mist?"

"I-I don't know," Sakura admitted and tried to see through the thick fog. "It is laced with your chakra, well the Kyuubi's chakra, so try to end the jutsu." Sakura waited for a moment but when nothing happened she suggest another idea. "Try to visualize ending the jutsu and have the fog thin out and disappear."

Seconds later, Naruto let out an annoyed sigh and looked at the pinkette. "Sorry I tried but it's not working."

"It's ok, it was worth a shot," Sakura said and tried to find her sandals once more through the thick haze. Giving up, she turned to look at Naruto. "Guess it is pointless to try and find my sandals. Let's keep going and try and find a stream or lake to clean ourselves in."

"Okay," Naruto said and knelt before her, turning his back towards her. "Hop on."

Surprised, Sakura stood rooted in place. "Thank you Naruto but I can walk. I am not that injured."

"I know but you don't have anything to wear on your feet. It would be stupid to let you walk barefoot. I don't want you to hurt yourself more than is really necessary."

"Alright, I guess that makes sense," Sakura admitted and climbed onto Naruto's back as her legs were swept up by Naruto's hands and her arms went around his shoulders. "But we'll stop when you get tired. Promise!"

"Yes, yes we will stop the minute I get tired. C'mon let's go," and with those words, Naruto started trudging forward with Sakura riding on his back. "Um, which way do I have to go to return us to the road?"

"I think you have to keep a little to your right," Sakura said and pointed with her right arm. "That way but let me check the compass real fast. Yeah that way should do," Sakura repeated after looking at the compass pointing North.

"Alright hold on tight," Naruto said and quickly increased his pace.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX****XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"Kakashi-sempai did you feel that?" Tenzo asked quietly as their group suddenly stopped and all looked North.

"Yes I did," Kakashi replied. "Do you think it is close? What does the alert seal in the palm of your hand say?"

Tenzo looked at his hand and shook his head, "It is not responding. Perhaps we are mistaken?"

"No, I don't think so." Kakashi muttered and looked thoughtful.

"Yo, what's the deal Kakashi?" Anko spoke up in irritation at their sudden stop. "We're close to the Land of Rain, why did you stop?"

"Anko didn't you just feel that chakra spike?" Kakashi asked the Jonin. He turned and looked at everyone, "Did any of you feel it?"

"What are you talking about Kakashi? We didn't feel anything," Maito Gai spoke up and received several nods.

"I felt it too," Yuugao spoke up and stepped closer to Tenzo. "And you are sure that your alert seal is working properly?"

"Yes it is," Tenzo replied with a hint of frustration. "The only way for the Alert seal to not react, would be if Naruto's seal had broken."

"Wait a goddamn second," Anko barked. "What are you three talking about? What does it have to do with Naruto and his seal?"

"Anko we thought we just felt the Kyuubi's chakra in the distance spike," Kakashi answered and looked North East in the direction from which he had sensed the weak chakra spike.

"Y-you mean the Kyuubi has broken free of Naruto?" Iruka asked in concern and fear for the Blond Genin.

"No, I believe Naruto might have tapped into the Kyuubi's powers but the mystery lies within Tenzo's alert seal. It should tell us how much power Naruto is using by giving us a number from one to nine."

"Why nine?" Gai asked.

"The numbers of chakra tails that have formed," Tenzo answered and stared at his palm. "If Naruto reaches four, he goes berserk and won't be able to discern between friend and foe. And the Kyuubi's chakra damages Naruto's body at that stage as well."

"How high has Naruto ever gone?" Anko asked in curiosity.

"Four," Tenzo replied and had a pained expression. "It was during the mission to get in contact with Sasori's spy, who was within Orochimaru's ranks. It turned out to be a trap set by Orochimaru and Naruto went four-tailed and fought off the Snake Sannin. In the process, Naruto severely injured Sakura; she still bears a scar on her upper arm from just receiving a swipe from one of Naruto's chakra trails."

"Should we investigate? Perhaps we can find Naruto," Genma suggested.

"No," Kakashi said. "We should continue towards the Land of Rain and investigate Amegakure. The chakra spike was very faint and it's possible we might have just imagined it. Either way, it is probably quite far and Naruto would be long gone by the time we find the area where we felt the chakra spike originate from."

"Let's keep going," Kakashi continued after a brief pause of self deliberation and he returned to jumping from tree canopy to tree canopy thinking, _"I hope I am doing the right thing here by not investigating."_

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX****XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"Itachi! Kisame! Report!"

Two figures shimmered alive in a grand cave and Kisame's distorted voice came forth from the taller of the two images, "What do you want Pain-sama?"

"It appears the Kyuubi child is in the Land of Lightning. Travel there immediately and investigate. Retrieve the Nine-Tail at once."

"As you command," Itachi muttered and his astral image disappeared with Kisame's quickly following.

Simultaneously in Kumogakure, a tall muscular dark skinned man with sunglasses looked up from where he lay and frowned. _"Oi! Hachi, did you feel that?"_

"**I have indeed,"** the Hachibi replied. **"It appears a fellow Jinchuuriki is within your country's borders."**

"_Indeed it does,"_ Killer Bee responded in thought. _"I guess it is best I'll let brother know."_

"**I will never understand your attachment to that man,"** the Hachibi growled. **"All he ever did for you was giving you a name. Hell I called you twerp and I don't get the respect I should deserve from you."**

Killer Bee grinned as he listened to the demon within him complain, _"But bro called me Killer Bee. That beats the hell out of twerp any day."_

"**Whatever twerp,"** the demon rumbled in annoyance. **"I guess I should have just called you bed wetter. Hey no angry face, I simply call them as I see them. And speaking of calling what I see, it appears your useless brother is one step ahead of you. Here come the three idiots that you call students: Dumb, Dumber, and Dumbest."**

"Fuck me sideways and bury me in a pool of acid," Killer Bee growled quietly as he watched his three bickering students approach him.

"Shut up!"

"No, you shut up!"

"Both of you shut up before I make you!"

"You wish you could you ugly old hag!"

"What did you call me you dickless possum?"

"ARG! Would you two morons just shut up!"

"No you shut up boobless witch."

Killer Bee sighed and thought, _"I need a vacation!"_

"Yo! Sensei!"

"SenSEI!"

"SENSEI!"

"WHAT?" Killer Bee roared as his three students repeatedly called for his attention.

"Nothing," all three simultaneously muttered and tried to hide behind each other, which only resulted in another shouting match between the three Kumo shinobi.

"**And, are you still happy that you were able to subdue me all those years ago? You know, if you hadn't, you could have just released me now and claim I took control over you while slaughtering your precious students here."** The Hachibi rumbled within Killer Bee. **"In fact, you could still do it. Even though it be hard to explain how you lost control over me after having control of me in the first place. Kami they are so annoying. Can't I just eat them? Pretty please…"**

"_Don't tempt me Hachi,"_ Killer Bee growled to the demon sealed inside of him. He heard the Hachibi chuckle and Killer Bee rolled with his eyes in annoyance. "I am out of here," Killer Bee muttered and shunshined away from his bickering students. He reappeared inside the Raikage's office.

"About time you show up Bee," the Raikage growled. "I sent those three students of yours out to get you hours ago! What took you so long?"

Killer Bee raised an eye brow behind his sunglasses, "Hours ago? Those idiots only just found me. So I take it this isn't about the other Jinchuuriki then?"

"What other Jinchuuriki? Have you been smoking again? Damn it Bee I told you to stop with that shit," the Raikage shouted in anger. "Don't you think it is bad enough that Yugito is gone? I need you brother; I need you to be at your best."

"Chill bro," Killer Bee replied and flung himself onto the couch in the corner. He propped up his head on one of his arms and looked at his brother, "I already told you that I will find out who took Yugito's head and will take revenge for Kumo. I know you had a thing for her," Killer Bee added and wiggled suggestively with his eye brows.

The Raikage's brow twitched in annoyance and a vein popped out of the side of his neck. Killer Bee laughed and sat up, "So why did you have to talk to me?"

The Raikage was quiet as he sat down in his chair. He swiveled around to look out over his village, "I want you to head into the mountains. Go train and take those three idiots that you call your students with you. I want you to leave as soon as possible. At the latest, I want you out of the village in two weeks. Got it?"

"Alright fine I'll go! Stop pestering me with that shit every day," Killer Bee muttered and sighed in defeat. "But those idiots stay here. I am going by myself or else I might end up killing them."

"If that is the condition that I can finally get you to train," the Raikage said while looking out over the village. "Fine, those three will stay here but tell them where you plan to go, so that I can at least send them to get you if your expertise is needed. But I warn you Bee, you're supposed to train and not work on your horrible rapping skills."

"Yeah sure whatever," Killer Bee said nonchalantly and stood up from the couch and walked towards the door. "Anyways I am out. I want to investigate something outside the village."

The Raikage turned and looked at his brother in surprise, "You're actually doing something that doesn't require my constant pestering? Should I be concerned?"

Killer Bee laughed, "I doubt it bro. I'll let you know if I find something interesting about that Jinchuuriki chakra spike."

"So you were serious about that? It wasn't another plan to distract me from my goal to convince you to go training?" The Raikage muttered looking concerned.

Killer Bee shook his head. "Nope, it's true. Hachi and I both felt it, since we know what demonic chakra feels like. It was quite weak, so I don't think many realized or even felt anything, however, Hachibi claims it was within our borders. No harm done if I go to our southern border and investigate."

The Raikage looked troubled, "Do you think it's an invasion?"

"Who knows," Killer Bee said in thought. "But if it was, they certainly fucked it up by having their Jinchuuriki use their powers."

"Okay go," the Raikage decided. "Be careful and come back you hear me. Don't you dare run away in order to skip out of training!"

"You know me."

"Yeah, that's what has me worried." The Raikage muttered as he watched his brother leave his office.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX****XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"Ne Sakura-chan how is the water?" Naruto called over as he desperately tried to get out of his pants but couldn't since he had his zipper stuck in the fabric of his pants.

"It's nice," Sakura called over and vigorously rubbed herself down with a bar of soap. She knew she was clean but somehow she still felt the Swordsman's stench on her skin. Her creamy white skin was already turning red from her applied abuse but she couldn't stop.

"Damn stupid zipper," Naruto shouted in frustration and frantically tugged on the metal in hope of forcing it open. "GAH!"

Sakura looked towards Naruto and saw him lying on his back and desperately clutching his pants. She shook her head and let out an amused sigh. Forgetting her need to scrub herself clean, she waded out of the small lake that they had found and trotted towards him. "Naruto hold still," she ordered him when she reached him and her hands batted away his own from the zipper. "Let me have a look."

"Okay but hurry," Naruto said. "I really got to pee."

"Don't worry," Sakura said reassuringly. "I'll fix this in a second. Now, first let's zip it all the way up again and hope the zipper teeth will release the cloth." Sakura did so and frowned when the zipper didn't budge and refused to close up. "Naruto did you try and force it down?"

Naruto chuckled uneasily and looked away sheepishly, "I might have."

Sakura sighed, "I guess that leaves us with only one option."

"And that is?"

"This one," Sakura said and with a forceful tug and the sound of tearing fabric, Sakura pulled down the zipper with her chakra enhanced strength and tore out the entire zipper. "Oops, sorry Naruto, I guess that was a little too much chakra."

Naruto laughed, "Don't be. I am finally free. Now excuse me," Naruto said and rushed away behind a tree.

Feeling the cold wind on her naked and wet skin, Sakura quickly retreated into the water of the lake and continued to methodically scrub her clean and fought through the pain of her abused skin. A loud whoop and a splash announced Naruto's arrival within the lake and Sakura quickly found herself caught within his arms.

"Sakura-chan stop," Naruto whispered into her ear and pried the bar of soap out of her hands as they stood chest deep in the water. "You are more than clean."

"No I am not," Sakura whimpered realizing he had seen her even though she had tried to hide it from him. "I can still feel his dirty hands on me, his stench..."

"Sakura-chan," Naruto whispered lovingly and held her tightly. "Let me show you," Naruto muttered and started placing soft kisses on her neck and shoulder.

"Naruto stop," Sakura pleaded with him. "I am not clean, you can't…" But her words fell on deaf ears as Naruto ignored her pleas to stop and his mouth and hands explored her body. Tears escaped her, not tears of joy or fear but of shame as Naruto tried to comfort her through the ordeal.

She cried and pushed her head into his chest, "I am sorry Naruto. I couldn't protect you, couldn't protect myself from such a man, if it weren't for you…"

"Shhh Sakura-chan," Naruto whispered and gently rocked her in his arms. "This doesn't change anything, I still love you, will always love you."

"But," Sakura cried and was silenced with a kiss.

"No buts," Naruto breathed onto her lips and his right hand pushed her butt closer to him as he lined her up under water and entered her. "I love you Sakura-chan, always have and always will. Nothing will change that."

"Naruto-kun," Sakura whimpered as she felt him slowly push inside of her.

Minutes later, as they lay on the lake shore in each others' arms, Sakura looked at Naruto's calm face, "Thank you Naruto, for everything."

Naruto smiled but didn't say a word as his mind was occupied with what the demon had told him to become. Minutes of silence passed between the two before Naruto spoke up, "Sakura-chan about the Kyuubi…"

He was silenced with her hand on his lips. "You're not the Kyuubi Naruto."

"But I am, now more than ever before," Naruto wanted to scream but couldn't. "He said it himself. He told me that we were one now, told me to become him, to become the new Kyuubi no Kitsune. I wasn't even injured by his chakra when I transformed Sakura-chan. I am the Kyuubi, what other explanation is there?"

"Naruto listen to yourself," Sakura said with all the patience and caring in the world. "That's not even possible."

"But what if it is Sakura-chan? What if the demon isn't lying? What if I really have become the new Kyuubi no Kitsune?" Naruto muttered dejectedly.

"So what?" Sakura snapped and kissed him forcefully. "You are still Uzumaki Naruto. I don't care if you are the Kyuubi no Kitsune or death incarnate, to me you are and always will be Naruto. You have been my life for so long, even without realizing it and you will be my life for far longer. Listen to me Naruto, I love you and just as your love for me won't change, mine won't change either. No matter what you are, have, or will become."

"But," Naruto started and fell quiet; too afraid to speak his worry out loud, yet in his mind he did finish his train of thought. _"But what about the children I want to have with you? What will they be?"_

"But what?" Sakura asked when she realized Naruto wasn't continuing. "Tell me Naruto? What has you so worried?"

He looked at her with concerned blue eyes and muttered, "It's nothing. C'mon let me help you with healing your injuries. I can at least hold the mirror for you so you can work with both of your hands."

"Okay, thanks." Sakura said and got the mirror out of their pack. She started with her face and winced at the horrible visage that greeted her. And with careful manipulation of her chakra, she began to heal her cut and bruises in her face, while her mind was focused on Naruto's unspoken and unfinished sentence. _"I know this subject isn't over yet but perhaps he needs time."_


	8. The Day After

**F****ū****rinkazan**

Chapter – 7

"The Day After"

Naruto and Sakura awoke to the call of the resident cockle as the sun slowly rose over the wheat fields the next day. They had arrived in the small farming community late in the afternoon of the previous day and quickly found the only Inn. They had gotten themselves a room and ate a short dinner before heading upstairs to sleep, for both were extremely exhausted from the confrontation with the Kiri nuke-nin.

Naruto tried to roll onto his back but couldn't when he realized that Sakura was lying in his arms. He propped himself up and looked down at Sakura's serene face. He studied her face and the cuts and bruises were gone and only a small discoloring of the skin showed where Sakura had been injured. He was amazed at the healing ability of chakra all his life but yesterday when he had watched Sakura heal her face and saw the pain she was in, Naruto for the first time in his time was grateful to the Kyuubi within him and his ability to heal all his injuries without a hitch and pain.

Her swollen eyes were all but gone; the only remnants of their swollen state were darker violet blotches underneath her eyes. The cut on her left cheek that had been done to her by the Swordsman was healed as well and only a tiny barely recognizable white scar reminded him of that injury.

Naruto's hand gently crawled under her shirt and rested on her bruised stomach. She winced in pain upon his touch and her jade green eyes fluttered open. She looked up into his worried and apologetic blue orbs and a small reassuring smile played across her lips.

"It hurts but nothing life threatening Naruto-kun," Sakura reassured him and licked her dry lips that had also taken a beating the previous day but where now completely healed. Yesterday, when she had started healing herself, she had mended her split lips first, knitting the flesh and skin back together with her chakra. And even though Sakura had fought the swelling in her face with her chakra, Naruto could swear her lips looked fuller today than they normally did.

"_I must be imagining it,"_ he thought as he continued to study her face. A small smile crossed his face, "Good Morning Sakura-chan. Sorry, I didn't mean to wake you up."

"I was already awake," Sakura said and carefully lifted the shirt to look at her bruised stomach. She winced again at the sight that was revealed to her and even Naruto felt the pain she must have been experiencing.

Her toned stomach was bruised to a dark violet, if not to an almost black and Sakura carefully removed his hand from her belly in order to minimize contact with her pained abdomen. "Do you think you can move at all?" Naruto asked in worry.

Sakura nodded but winced when she tried to move. "Um, well I guess I am wrong."

Naruto chuckled, "Can't you heal your stomach like you did with your face? I know you said that you couldn't remove all signs of bruising and that some injuries need to heal without chakra manipulation but don't you think this is a little overboard?"

"I was just low on chakra yesterday so I only mended my face and the potentially life threatening injuries. I was going to get the rest done today." Sakura said and was already in the process of summoning her chakra to her hands. She winced again as her fingers carefully touched her black and blue stomach and Naruto watched once again in fascination how the discoloring of her skin slowly lightened and in some areas completely vanished leaving behind clean and healthy skin.

Minutes turned to an hour of Sakura slowly healing her bruised body and when she was done, she slowly sat upright to lean against the headboard of their rented bed. Every muscle and bone complained in pain but at least she was able to properly move again. "Okay I am good now, not quite comfortable but I'll manage."

"Are you sure?" Naruto asked in worry.

"Yes I'll be fine," Sakura responded and lovingly patted one of Naruto's hands. "Naruto-kun can you please go downstairs and ask at the reception if we can get room service?"

"Sure Sakura-chan," Naruto replied happily and slipped out of bed. He walked into the bathroom, only to return several minutes later washed and dressed only in a towel. "Sakura-chan what happened to our clothes? I could have sworn I placed them into the bathtub last night."

"Oh I threw them into a laundry bag," Sakura replied looking up from reading their small book that held all of their special ninja gear sealed inside. "Check our door, the receptionist said they had an overnight laundry service. Our clothes should be cleaned and returned to us already."

"Oh okay," Naruto replied and walked towards the door to their room and opened it. And just as Sakura had claimed, Naruto found their cleaned clothes inside a plastic bag that was standing in front of their door. Naruto picked up the bag and walked back inside, closing the door behind him. "Here it is. I'll get dressed and then I'll go downstairs and ask for room service. What would you like to eat Sakura-chan?"

"I don't care, Ham and Eggs are fine." Sakura replied and slowly slipped out of the bed. "I am going to take a bubble bath, so take your time Naruto."

"A bubble bath?" Naruto groaned in question and his stomach rumbled a complaint. He sighed in defeat, "Right Sakura-chan. I guess I'll take a look at the village and see if I can't find our contact in the meantime."

"You do that," Sakura called out of the bathroom. She turned on the water and let the bathtub fill with the warm liquid. She turned around and stood inside the doorframe to the bathroom and watched Naruto get dressed.

Naruto realized that Sakura was watching him. He walked towards her after being fully dressed and gently slung his arms around her hips and kissed her. "I'll be back in a bit. Take your time."

A smile tucked at Sakura's lips and she nodded. Naruto walked away and let his arms gently drag across her hips as if he didn't want to let go and before he could walk out of arms reach, he found his hands clasped in between Sakura's. He turned around in question and Sakura stepped closer for another kiss.

"Naruto we need to get some money," Sakura muttered after they broke their kiss. "We are running low and we need to purchase more clothes and I need new foot wear. You can't carry me on your back all the time."

"I know," Naruto said and rubbed the back of his head in discomfort. "I'll get us some extra money. You don't worry Sakura-chan. I'll also buy you some new sandals while you take your bath."

"Thanks and Naruto," Sakura stopped him again from walking away.

"Yeah what is it?"

"Um… How did you and Jiraiya get more money during your travel?" Sakura asked in curiosity. "I mean, well, you know…" She looked away from his questioning eyes. "Perhaps we can do similar things to earn money while we travel?"

Naruto scratched the back of his head in confusion. "Huh?! Sakura-chan what's wrong? Are you ashamed to ask?"

"No, no," Sakura replied quickly waving her hands back and forth and looked at him again. "I just thought that perhaps you had to do things I wouldn't want to know about." Sakura's voice fell very quiet until she unintelligible mumbled, "Like sleeping with other women to earn money and help the pervert with his research."

Naruto's eyes widened in surprise and he walked up to her and pulled her into his arms, "Is that what you think I did to earn money on my travel with Ero-sennin?"

A weak nod of her pink head gave him his answers. Naruto chuckled, "Nothing of that sort ever happened. Trust me Sakura-chan, Ero-sennin might have been a super pervert but he wasn't like that. He wasn't a pimp, even though," Naruto trailed off thinking out loud. "If you consider that most of his female spies work in brothels… Ah whatever," Naruto shook his head to get it clear. "If you truly want to know how we made money, I'll tell you."

"Please," Sakura muttered and had her arms tightly wrapped around him as her head rested on his chest.

"We took small missions," Naruto replied as he rested his head on top of hers. "And we collected a few bounties as well. Those actually pay the most of course and I had to gather quite a few too. Believe it or not but Jiraiya's research budget was bigger than Baa-chan's sake and gambling budget. On a good night, he easily spent close to a million ryō in a single night."

"You mean…"

"Yup, he spent all that money on prostitutes and sake," Naruto said. "Don't you worry; I'll ask the contact if she knows of a few bounties we can collect on as we travel through Lightning Country. They know that stuff because Jiraiya would always need more money, and we can also loan us a bit from her if needed. Now go enjoy your bath and stop worrying. I'll be back in a bit."

"Okay," Sakura said and kissed him once more. "Hurry back and don't forget to order room service."

"I will," Naruto replied and swiftly exited their room.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"And how do the sandals fit?" Naruto asked eagerly as he watched Sakura try on the Greek styled sandals he got her. He had no idea what Greek was but he liked the design of them right away when he saw them.

Sakura briefly walked around the room and stopped all of a sudden and looked at him, "They fit perfectly. How did you know my size?"

Naruto chuckled embarrassingly, "Well having been at the end of your foot numerous times, I am bound to recognizing your proper size ne?"

Sakura giggled, "Naruto you're silly. Now tell me how did you know? Don't tell me you spied or stole a pair of my shoes once? Wait; don't tell me you have a fetish that I didn't know about?"

"No, no," Naruto quickly replied. "I won't reveal my source but a ninja has to know these sorts of things. I can even tell you Kakashi-sensei's or Baa-chan's shoe size."

Sakura smirked, "Okay now I am definitely sure that you have a foot fetish."

"Na, na Sakura-chan that is not nice," Naruto muttered and pouted with his arms crossed in front of his chest and looked away from her.

"Aw c'mon don't be like that," Sakura jested. "You know I was just teasing you. I don't think you have a foot fetish at all."

A single blue eye opened and peaked at Sakura, who was studying him. "Hn," Naruto grunted and stood up. "Alright fine, you're forgiven."

"Thanks," Sakura smiled and happily bounced towards him and laid a soft kiss on one of his cheeks. "Now while you were walking around the village, did you find your contact?"

"No but I did find the sake bar where she wants to meet us," Naruto responded while looking down at the one head shorter pinkette in front of him.

"I see and when did she say that she wanted to meet us there?" Sakura asked and walked towards their bed to gather up their things.

"She wanted to meet in the early afternoon," Naruto responded and followed Sakura to help her. He handed her the book she had been reading, while Sakura was folding and sealing away the clothes they slept in.

"Thanks," Sakura said as Naruto handed her the book. "So we have a couple of hours to spend walking around the village?"

"Yes, unless you want to wait in the sake bar for her the entire time," Naruto said as he walked into the bathroom to check for anything that they might be forgetting.

"You think the woman will show up early?" Sakura asked and called after him as she closed their small travel bag. "By the way, what is her name?"

Naruto returned from the bathroom carrying their tooth brushes, "I honestly don't know. Jiraiya called everyone by codenames. I just know her as 'Violet Kumo'."

"Violet Kumo? That is a strange codename," Sakura muttered and took the tooth brushes from Naruto and placed them into the bag.

"Eh," Naruto shrugged with his shoulders and took the bag out of Sakura's hands. "This time I'll be carrying it. And about her weird name… Ero-sennin always used a combination of color and the village the person is living in."

"Oh," Sakura said and thought for a minute.

"Yeah I know, not very original." Naruto said and took her hand into his and they walked towards the door.

"So she is from Kumo? A Kunoichi perhaps?" Sakura asked as they were about to exit their hotel room.

"Yes she lives in Kumo, is probably from there too but I don't know if she is a Kumo shinobi or not," Naruto admitted and opened the door. Both of them stepped through and walked downstairs towards the receptionist. "I don't even know how Jiraiya met her but her Intel was always reliable and trustworthy. And her skills in forging documents are unbelievable. They look so real, that I sometimes think that they are real and not some forgery."

"I see and did you mention your concerns to Jiraiya?"

"Sort of," Naruto replied. "He didn't really pay attention and just told me to not worry about it."

"Okay I guess if Jiraiya trusted her and was happy with her skills, we shouldn't need to worry about it." Sakura said to him as they walked down the flight of stairs.

"At least we shouldn't lose sleep over it," Naruto replied with a hint of a smile on his lips as he remembered quoting Jiraiya say the exact same words to him when Naruto had asked the Toad Sage. "C'mon let's pay our bill and check out the village together. With luck we can find a quick job that will earn us some fast money."

"Sure," Sakura agreed and stepped up to the reception desk and paid their bill.

Both of them were quickly out on the streets and walked along the main road of the village. The road was lined with small shops and stands. It wasn't much but there wasn't much to be expected of a small farming community. They reached the village circle and immediately saw the main attractions of the village. In the center stood a small well with a few benches to sit down on. In the far back was the smithy, while the bakery stood off to the right. To the left were several small food stands as well as the grocery.

"I sometimes wonder how these small communities can survive out here," Naruto muttered as the two looked at everything around them. "I mean these people must all live from each other and depend on them. If there is a little influx of money coming into their pockets, it can only come from travelers like us."

"True," Sakura said. "But they also sell their crops to surrounding villages and I bet Kumogakure along with their Daimyo are the main customers. It looks like a bleak life to us because we grew up in a large village but to these people, it's a way of life. I bet the majority of the villagers are quite happy with what they have or are at least content."

"I guess," Naruto responded and pointed towards a building. "That's the sake bar and over there," Naruto pointed to another smaller building, "Is where I bought your sandals."

"Okay but now what? Want to see if we can find a small job for some money?"

"I guess," Naruto said but didn't look convinced. "But I don't think we'll find anything quick and easy. My guess is we could probably find something at one of the local farmsteads but that work will be at least a few days if not weeks. Perhaps if we are lucky, we can ask for the local doctor and you can offer your help and services for a small fee in healing the sick and injured."

"It's worth a shot," Sakura decided and approached one of the villagers.

"Excuse me," Sakura spoke to an elderly woman, who was passing them. "Could you please tell me where I may find the local doctor?"

"I am sorry dear but our village has no doctor," the Elder replied and looked from Sakura to Naruto. "If you or your man is in need of medical help, you will have to go to the next town. Just head west on the road and it will lead you directly to the town. You can't miss it and its only four hours away by horseback."

"Oh thank you for your help and sorry to have bothered you," Sakura bowed in thanks and briefly watched the old woman leave. She turned to Naruto, "I guess we're out of luck."

"Let's just go to the sake bar and wait for the contact, unless you wish to walk around some more," Naruto suggested.

He received a nod from Sakura and both of them walked to the bar and took a seat inside at a table in the corner. Their eyes scanned the patrons for any suspicious behavior and then after ordering sake, they quietly talked to each other and waited while keeping a trained eye on the patrons and the door that lead into the bar.

Time quickly flew by as Naruto and Sakura discussed their next steps on their journey away from Konoha. The topic of settling near Iwagakure was brought up by Sakura again as she voiced her concern for their safety considering that Iwa and Konoha were not on all too friendly terms.

"And you are sure Naruto?" Sakura asked questioningly as she watched the Blond smile.

"Yes I am," Naruto responded nodding more to himself than to Sakura. "Iwagakure, especially its surrounding area are the least likely area for Danzo's Root Anbu and Konoha's Hunter-nin to look for us. Unlike the other villages and countries, the history between Earth and Fire country alone makes it nearly impossible for them to move freely."

"But what makes you so sure?"

"In my journey with Ero-sennin we traveled through Earth Country and I know from firsthand experience how mistrusting Iwa and the Earth citizens are. Anything remotely suspicious is reported immediately to the authorities by the people and before knowing what happened, you are surrounded by four teams of fully armed Iwa Anbu." Naruto explained "And trust me when I say that they don't like Konoha very much."

"Fine but how were you and Jiraiya safe? How did you two travel through Earth Country? I imagine you must have been constantly stopped, checked, searched, and what not?"

Naruto chuckled, "Yeah it was something along those lines. We were also threatened, beaten, and thrown into jail numerous times. Ero-sennin explained to me that there was no better way to practice evasion tactics for a Leaf shinobi than to attempt to travel across Earth Country without being caught."

"Eh? But you suck at evasion," Sakura sputtered out to which Naruto only grinned.

"Well of course I do," Naruto admitted and tried to look sheepish. "I am not bad but it's practically impossible to not get caught with Ero-sennin tagging along. The second he'd see a woman, he'd be all over her and bring the wrath of the authorities down on us in no time."

Sakura groaned at hearing that and deflated, "I really can't believe that pervert was one of the legendary Sannin."

Naruto only nodded in agreement, "In fact all three of them aren't so hot."

"I guess you're right," Sakura agreed as she reevaluated the legend of the three Sannin and their skills, and compared them to the three shinobi she knew. Sakura sighed upon her realization that in their own ways even Tsunade and Jiraiya were no better than Orochimaru. "Alright that sort of explains why Konoha will have trouble looking for us in Earth Country but what about the two of us? We're from the Leaf too."

"Yes but here is where the contact comes into play," Naruto muttered. "We will get new identities, well more like new citizenship papers and stuff."

An eye brow rose, "Explain the stuff part to me please."

"Well you said you wanted to get married right?" Naruto asked with his voice filled of hope but also fear.

"Yes," Sakura replied wondering where he was going with this. "You did ask me after all."

"Right," Naruto chuckled uneasily. "I know we've only been together for a few days and even though we've known each other for so long it was still quite unorthodox to ask you to marry me this quickly but…"

"Naruto," Sakura interrupted him and placed her hands on top of his as they drummed nervously on the table. "Unorthodox? Yes, however, I think a better term to describe the situation would be by calling it a typical Naruto moment."

Naruto grinned, "Heh that's me alright. Anyways, I told the contact to bring marriage papers along for us to sign. I know this is a bit sudden and probably a huge surprise but it would certainly solidify our cover once we are in Earth Country. Nobody would suspect the freshly married couple wanting to start a new life. I just wish I could give you the big ring and wedding ceremony that you must be wanting and I am sorry I can't."

"Naruto it is fine," Sakura told him and smiled. "We can't be picky about things like having a pompous wedding. Who would we invite to it anyways?"

"That was a joke right?" Naruto asked not entirely sure.

Sakura rolled with her eyes, "Yes it was."

"Oh okay," Naruto said and grinned feeling like an idiot. "I promise to make it up to you though. I want you to experience a real wedding eventually."

"Naruto that's sweet of you but signing documents make it as real as it can be," Sakura said and scooted closer with her seat so she could lean her head against his shoulders while their fingers intertwined under the table. "Considering our circumstances, we should be glad that we are alive and healthy. I am happy Naruto; with you by my side I can truly say that I am happy. We just need to be careful and bide our time. Okay?"

"Definitely," Naruto replied but his mind was already racing a mile a minute again trying to come up with a plan to get their lives back in order and secure for him and Sakura a future together back home in Konoha However, up until now all scenarios that he came up with failed spectacular after he ran them through his head after a night's rest. He was close to giving it up for now and actually listen to Sakura and bide his time. After all he knew that the greatest weapon wasn't forged in one sitting.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"Is that her?" Sakura asked for the hundredth time as another woman entered the sake bar they were sitting in. Sakura was surprised that Naruto hadn't grown impatient or annoyed at her constant questioning.

"No, that isn't her." Naruto replied absentmindedly after taking a brief glance as his thumb drew small circles on the back of her hand.

Sakura sighed loudly and just wanted to lay her head on the table and close her eyes for a minute but she knew she had to fight the boredom. In a way she found it ironic that the roles between her and Naruto had been reversed. Normally he was the bored and impatient one of the two, while Sakura was calm and in control but today it was the other way around and Sakura knew it was due to the fact that Naruto was doing some untypically heavy thinking.

The door to the bar opened again and Sakura looked in the direction and wanted to repeat her question only to stop and frown with her mouth open. "No, that's probably not her," she muttered. "Definitely too old and definitely not Jiraiya-sama's type," she mused and returned to staring at her empty sake saucer. She had learned to like the taste of the alcoholic beverage and that frightened her a little. One thing she didn't want to copy from her Master was the bad drinking and gambling habits.

"Did you say she was old?" Naruto suddenly asked interrupting her self-reflection. "Where is she?"

Sakura looked with a stunned expression at Naruto, "Excuse-me?"

"Ah there she is," Naruto said happily totally ignoring Sakura as he stood and waved towards the older woman.

Sakura followed Naruto's line of sight and frowned when she saw the short robust looking woman wobble towards them using a cane for help. She slapped Naruto's shoulder and hissed, "Why didn't you tell me that she was old?"

Naruto looked at Sakura in surprise before shrinking in shame, "Must have slipped my mind. Sorry."

"Unbelievable," Sakura huffed and was rightfully a tad bit annoyed for she had assumed that Jiraiya would only use gorgeous women for his spy work.

"Well hello there Naruto-chan," the old woman croaked as she finally reached their table after a snail's pace through the bar. "And this must be the famous Sakura-chan. Hello my dear. I must say Naruto didn't exaggerate about your beauty when he spoke of you."

"Thank you," Sakura replied a bit startled at the sudden flattery. "It is nice to meet you and thank you so much for your help."

"Ah this is nothing, anything for one of Jiraiya's students. So tell me Naruto, where is the old coot? Emptying out your poor Gama-chan again?"

Naruto's face saddened, "Violet-baa-chan, Ero-sennin, I mean Jiraiya-sama has died. He fell in battle trying to locate Akatsuki's base of operation."

"Oh I am sorry to hear that Naruto-chan," the old woman muttered in sorrow. "I will certainly miss his stories and company. I imagine you are taking a tour and are informing everyone that you are taking over his spy network?"

"Um no not really," Naruto admitted sheepishly. He saw the odd look the woman was giving him and he quickly added, "I mean I will take it over but that is not the reason why I need these documents and permits from you."

"Oh," the woman mouthed and looked from Naruto to Sakura and back to Naruto. "Why don't you start at the beginning?"

Naruto sighed and looked briefly at Sakura for reassurance. "Well to put it simply, I killed Tsunade-baa-chan."

The old woman was silent for a brief moment but her facial expression of utter shock spoke volumes. "Excuse-me Naruto but did you just say that you killed the Hokage?" She caught herself from blurting out her question in shock and quickly dropped her voice several levels and whispered quickly as if she was afraid someone could overhear them. "You are a nuke-nin now?"

"Yes," Naruto said and was halted by Sakura as she interjected.

"I am sorry to bud in but Naruto isn't explaining this correctly."

The old woman looked confused for a minute and turned towards Sakura. "Alright Saku-chan, why don't you explain this to me."

"Naruto didn't kill Tsunade-shishou. He was betrayed and tricked by Danzo. With the help of Orochimaru, Danzo had the Leaf convoy attacked on its way to the Chunin exams in Sunagakure. I arrived in the nick of time to rescue Naruto from being killed but I couldn't do anything about the Hokage." Sakura told the old lady and continued. "Later, after I defeated one of Danzo's Root Anbu that was following us, I found out that Danzo had claimed that Naruto killed the Hokage and me as well. For Konoha, Naruto is the murderer of the Godaime Hokage and her apprentice."

The woman frowned, "If I understand this correctly, you" and she pointed at Naruto. "Are a nuke-nin and the murderer of Tsunade Senju and Sakura-chan here? While you," she pointed at Sakura. "Are supposed to be dead, murdered at the hands of Naruto-chan? Is that about right?"

"Eh… yes," Naruto replied sounding a bit unsure himself.

"What a mess," the woman mumbled and shook her head. "So where is Tsunade now?"

"We don't know," Sakura admitted. "We haven't really spent much time thinking about this entire situation yet. We just know that we have to go into hiding and concentrated on that first. We think that she is alive but we also can't be sure. One thing we did know though is that she didn't fight when the convoy was attacked by Orochimaru. She just stood by and watched as everyone around her was slaughtered."

"I see," the woman said carefully having heard Sakura's tone drop a degree in warmth. "Well I will definitely keep an ear out for anything and inform you as soon as I have something to report. If I may suggest Naruto, contact the other spies that worked for Jiraiya. Inform of them that you are taking over the operation. Now on to business," she said and pulled out a folder with several documents.

"Alright, first I need to say that you two picked a wonderful cover by using the freshly married couple ploy," the woman said and pushed a form in front of the two. "I need you to sign at the bottom and after I stamp it, you two are per Kumo standards officially married."

"Gomen," Naruto spoke up as he signed the marriage contract. "But Sakura and I are really getting married. This is just not the way we wanted it to happen."

"Oh," the woman looked from Naruto to Sakura a tad confused and it finally dawned on her. "Oh! Ah I guess congratulations are in order then. No matter though, you two would have been officially married regardless. At least you two don't have to act like a freshly married couple then." The lady beamed and stamped the seal of Kumogakure's Raikage onto the paper making it official.

"Now here is the bill to the wedding reception in Kumo," the woman handed them a rather expensive wedding bill. "Don't worry. You actually don't have to pay. I made a copy of a real one. It always helps to solidify ones marriage, may it be fake or real, if you can give the investigating officials proof in form of bills or pictures."

"Thank you," Sakura said and folded the bill and the marriage contract in half and carefully placed them in between the pages of her book.

"Alright and here are your new identity cards." The woman muttered not looking up from the folder and placed two cards onto the table. "Excellent, now all you need is the travel permit for Lightning Country, which I have right here."

"Gee Violet-baa-chan you really came through for me again." Naruto grinned and hugged the old woman.

"Nah, nah, Naruto-chan, I am only doing my job. Now tell me, where are you two planning to go into hiding?"

"Near Iwa," Naruto whispered knowing he could trust the old bat with his life.

The eyes of the woman grew wide in fear. "Iwa? Are you insane? You're from the Leaf; if they find out, they will kill you."

"What are you talking about? Sakura-chan and I are from Kumogakure."

"What?" The woman said in confusion and blinked. "Oh… right, my mistake. Well," She looked at Naruto and Sakura and studied them briefly before she nodded. "I think Sakura-chan should dye her hair a different color. Pink draws too much attention. Might I suggest the color red? Earth Country and Iwagakure have a fascination towards red haired women and Sakura having red hair will most likely work to your overall advantage during your stay in that country."

"Red?" Sakura asked half heartily. "I don't know…"

"Aw Sakura-chan I think you would look excellent with fiery red hair," Naruto said cheerfully and beamed at her.

"If you say so Naruto-kun," Sakura said and smiled lightly in unease of not being overly convinced about dying her hair a different color.

"Well if you two ladies would excuse me for a minute," Naruto said and stood up. "But I have to relief myself. Be right back."

Sakura watched Naruto leave and frowned when the old woman spoke to her quietly, "I should warn you Sakura. Naruto-chan can be quite dangerous. He carries a heavy burden."

"Are you talking about his uniqueness?" Sakura growled a silent a threat telling the woman that she didn't want to discuss the Kyuubi.

"Yes I am," the woman replied and looked satisfied. "I am sorry but I just wanted to make sure you knew what you were getting yourself into. I know you two have been team members since your Genin days but last time I spoke to Naruto and Jiraiya, nobody knew about his tenant back in Konoha."

"Well I know," Sakura replied rather coldly and quickly apologized.

"Don't worry, I shouldn't have assumed," the lady responded and fidgeted with her now empty folder.

"Can I help you otherwise?" Sakura asked knowing the old woman had something else on her mind.

She jumped a little and looked at Sakura with a warm smile, "I am sorry but please be careful in Earth Country. Their people and especially their shinobi are very mistrusting and the way Naruto looks, he could be mistaken for Iwa's Bane."

"Iwa's Bane?" Sakura repeated not knowing what the woman meant. "I am sorry but I never heard about it."

"Yes you have. Iwa's Bane is Konoha's Yondaime Hokage. Naruto, dear Naruto-chan looks like a miniature Namikaze. Would you happen to know who his parents are?"

"Who? Naruto's?" Sakura asked in confusion as she tried to overlap an image of the Fourth Hokage with Naruto's and she frowned at seeing a certain set of similarities. _"How odd,"_ Sakura thought to herself. _"They really do look alike."_

"I am sorry no I don't. Naruto was an orphan. He never had any parents and I don't think he knows himself." Sakura replied and smiled as she saw Naruto return.

"Oh I didn't know that," the woman responded and smiled as well as Naruto sat down again.

"Didn't know what?" Naruto asked curiously.

"Oh it is nothing important," the old lady replied. "Well here is the monthly bounty list and a few coins," the woman said and placed a small booklet and money on the table. "I figured you were traveling with Jiraiya again and might need a lot of money again. Guess I lay wrong in that assumption but I imagine you still need money. Take this and I wish you two the best of luck and stay safe. I hope to hear from you again in the future Naruto-chan and Sakura-chan. I must be going now. Farewell."

"Bye and thank you again for your help," Sakura said and helped the old woman out of her chair. She and Naruto watched the woman known as 'Violet Kumo' slowly walk out of the sake bar.

"What a strange lady," Sakura muttered as they were sitting down again. Naruto was currently browsing through the little pamphlet of bounties and simply nodded in agreement with Sakura's statement. The pinkette fingered with her empty sake saucer again and sighed. "And anyone of interest for us in that bounty list?"

"Actually yes," Naruto muttered and grinned. "There is a small fry of a bounty on our way North towards Lighting Country's main seaport town. There is just one small problem with it."

"What is it?" Sakura asked. "Not a high enough bounty?"

"Five hundred thousand ryō and the problem isn't really a problem but more an inconvenience."

Sakura raised an eye brow in question, "Stop avoiding it and tell me what this so called problem or inconvenience entails. The five hundred thousand ryō certainly can't be the issue."

"The only way for us to get the reward is to collect it in Kumogakure," Naruto said and looked up from the pamphlet at Sakura.

"Oh," Sakura voiced and frowned. "Well that certainly is a problem. Is collecting this bounty going to be difficult and worth the risk of exposing ourselves to Kumo?"

"Well here, look for yourself." Naruto said and showed Sakura the profile page of their potential target. "He is a Chunin of Kumo but the information added by Violet-baa-chan about him is quite specific. He was only recently promoted to Chunin and apparently he is currently living in a village not that far from here enjoying civilian life. He ran away from his clan in order to live with his girlfriend on a pig farm."

"Take away the pigs and that's kind of romantic," Sakura said and looked at the profile picture and her facial expression made Naruto giggle.

"Not exactly an eye candy is he?" Naruto chuckled and saw Sakura dumbly nod in confirmation. "Anyways, his parents put out the reward for his retrieval. They want him alive and apparently since his bounty doesn't go above a million ryō, nobody is interested. I think we should do it, it'll be a piece of cake."

"You really think so? But what about delivering him to Kumo?" Sakura asked.

"We'll figure something out. Remember we are now officially citizens of Lightning Country and we married in Kumo. We shouldn't have any problems getting into the village, let alone when we return a wayward shinobi to them." Naruto explained and slowly rose from the chair and waited for Sakura to follow his example. "Let's get going Sakura-chan. The least amount of time we spent here, the more trouble potential pursuit will have in following our trail. I realize you aren't a fan of dyeing your hair and personally I am against it too but perhaps it is a wise decision to do just that."

"You're probably right Naruto-kun," Sakura admitted as she took his hand into hers and walked outside into the streets. "I think I'll even let my hair grow out again. I kind of miss it."

"I miss it too," Naruto said and looked at her. "Alright let's go grab the wayward Kumo shinobi and return him home. After we collect the money, we can finally travel towards Earth Country by ship."

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Kakashi suddenly dropped down to the floor from the trees and hid behind a large boulder. He was quickly joined by Anko and Gai.

"What's the matter Kakashi?" Anko hissed as she looked at the silver haired Jonin's stone cold expression of focus. Not receiving an immediate answer Anko looked over to Gai who had landed on the other side of Kakashi and the Green Beast of Konoha simply shrugged his shoulders.

"Sempai?" Tenzo whispered as a partial wooden clone exited the ground to their feet. "Yuugao is roughly a hundred yards to your right hand side behind a fallen tree with Iruka. Genma and I are to your left while the rest is further back in the trees. They can all hear you, what is wrong?"

"They are here," Kakashi muttered quietly and spied over the boulder that he used for cover. His right hand went to his forehead protector and revealed his Sharingan. "Get ready to fight."

"Hai Sempai," the Tenzo wood clone replied and retreated beneath the ground.

"Who is here Kakashi?" Anko asked as she herself spied over the boulder but didn't see a thing.

"Genjutsu," Kakashi muttered and placed a hand on top of Anko's as she formed the ram sign to dispel the jutsu. "Don't, it will alert them to our presence."

Anko scowled as she looked at the silver haired Jonin. "And how do you expect us to fight or defend ourselves if we are attacked?"

"Don't worry. I'll give you plenty of warning ahead of time. Now be quiet and get ready. Tenzo," Kakashi softly called for the wood user and waited for the wood clone to reemerge from the ground.

"Yes Kakashi-sempai?"

"Tell everyone to not dispel the Genjutsu unless I give the order."

"Yes Sir."

A hundred yards to Kakashi's right Iruka quietly cursed as Tenzo's wood clone repeated Kakashi's order.

"Damn what the hell is Kakashi-san thinking? Are we suppose to sit here and wait whether we get stabbed in the back or not?"

"Quiet Iruka," Yuugao whispered and flicked him a stern look that spoke volumes to shut up or suffer Anbu punishment.

Iruka swallowed away the lump of curse words that were suddenly stuck in his throat and he carefully studied the very attractive Anbu woman next to him. He could see Yuugao's right hand firmly grasp around the hilt of her Anbu sword and Iruka was fascinated how such a delicate frail looking hand could wield an instrument of death so efficiently. His eyes flicked up to her long silken dark purplish hair and after looking at her beautiful face, Iruka saw that Yuugao wore a serene expression with her eyes closed in meditation.

Iruka's eyes then slowly followed down Yuugao's side profile and briefly froze on her chest before continuing their downward motion of the tight fitting Anbu uniform. He spent a considerable amount of time examining her long shapely legs, only to focus on her round butt. Images Iruka had never dreamt about in his wildest dreams suddenly flashed in front of his eyes and heated Iruka's face. He was rescued from his sudden and wild fantasies when Yuugao growled, "Iruka-san wipe that grin of your face."

"I… um… I am sorry," Iruka muttered in embarrassment at having been caught staring and not realizing he was smiling.

"Yuugao-san, Iruka-san," Tenzo's wood clone spoke softly. "Kakashi-sempai wants you two to carefully use the cover and widen the distance between him and your position."

"Affirmative," Yuugao responded and pointed with her short sword to her right. "Iruka you take the lead so I can keep an eye on you."

"Hai," Iruka replied automatically as his face turned tomato red at the implications and he quickly took the lead as they robbed on their stomachs further away from where Kakashi, Anko, and Gai were positioned.

After several minutes and peaking over the boulder Kakashi and his two comrades were using as cover, a soft clicking in his throat alerted Anko and Gai of his sudden annoyance. Anko caught herself from taking a look herself to see what annoyed the unofficial leader of their group. Instead she opted for the only way of finding out and she nudged him rather violently in the arm.

"What is it now?"

"They stopped," Kakashi replied unfazed by Anko's nudge.

"Damn," Anko muttered and Gai decided to finally speak up.

"Do you think they know we are here?"

"It's possible," Kakashi replied and froze when he felt a presence suddenly appear on the other side of their boulder. And Kakashi instantly used the Anbu hand sign for absolute silence to both Anko and Gai since both were still under the affect of the Genjutsu.

"ITACHI-SEMPAI! Sempai look a rabbit! May I keep it?"

"Tobi what the hell are you doing here? Did you follow us?" someone growled and Kakashi instantly recognized the voice belonging to Kisame.

"I shall name you Richard," Tobi squealed. "Itachi-sempai look, Richard likes me." Tobi yelled as the rabbit nibbled on one of Tobi's fingers.

"Tobi," Itachi's cold voice echoed over the clearing. "Step away from the boulder."

"Huh? What? Why?"

"Just do it moron," Kisame growled.

"But Kisame-sempai," Tobi whined from the other side of the boulder as the rabbit escaped out of Tobi's clutches. "You're so mean. You scared Richard away. I hate you."

Kakashi motioned for Anko and Gai to dispel the Genjutsu and get ready to fight. He twirled a kunai in his hand only to place it in between his teeth so he could flash through hand signs and as he finished on the last sign, Kakashi nodded for Anko and Gai to proceed. And in a loud chirping noise, Kakashi summoned a Chidori and slammed his arm into the rock splitting it in half and moving forward to kill the character called Tobi that was standing on the side of the boulder.

"What the hell," Tobi screamed in surprise and scrambled away stumbling numerous times over his own feet as he fled from the splitting rock. He hid behind Kisame and peaked around from the giant Kiri nuke-nin.

"Sempai what's going on?" Tobi squeaked in fear as the spot he just stood in vanished in a billowing cloud of dust and debris. "Did I do that sempai?"

"You're an idiot Tobi," Kisame grumbled and folded his arms across his chest as he waited. "And stop hiding like a coward. You're a disgrace to the cloak you wear."

And as the cloud tried to settle, several snakes suddenly shot out and flew towards the three Akatsuki members. Itachi and Kisame expertly avoided them but Tobi, dumb founded by the sudden appearance of snakes was captures as the serpents latched onto him and dragged him back towards the cloud.

"Sempai help me!" Tobi screamed in fear like an idiot and flailed his arms in panic as he tried to kick at the snakes that had coiled around him tightly.

"Good job Anko," Kakashi muttered and suddenly burst through the cloud charging at the snake entwined Tobi with a charged up Chidori.

"SEMPAI!" Tobi wailed as Kakashi rushed him.

And as Kakashi raced towards his intended kill, a green blur shot passed him and suddenly blocked Kisame's sword as it tried to cut the coils of snakes and Kakashi in two in an attempt to free Tobi. The air vibrated from the interception between Gai's kick and Kisame's sword but it didn't hinder Kakashi in advancing. Just right before Kakashi reached the masked Akatsuki, Itachi suddenly shunshined in front of him with his Sharingan eyes spinning violently.

"Shit," Kakashi muttered and quickly shut his eyes and aborted his charge. He jumped back towards the cloud of dust that now revealed Anko kneeling with her Shadow Snake Hand technique active. A second later, Gai appeared next to Kakashi as the Green Beast had quickly disengaged from fighting Kisame.

"That sword is amazingly resilient," Gai muttered to Kakashi and lightly tapped the ground with his right toes to loosen up his leg with which he had intercepted the sword.

"Damn what a kick," Kisame bellowed and rolled his shoulder with which he held his sword. "I can still feel the vibrations ebb up my arm… it tickles."

"Sempai!" Tobi wailed again as he was dragged closer towards Anko, who was licking her lips sadistically.

"Kisame if you would," Itachi replied never leaving his eyes off Kakashi, Anko, and Gai.

Kisame sighed and rushed forward once more to cut the snakes in half. Gai was about to move to intercept again when Kakashi placed a hand on his shoulder to halt the Jonin from charging recklessly in. Gai looked at Kakashi in question and the silver haired Jonin offered an explanation.

"Itachi isn't serious about this. He already has his Sharingan deactivated but if you intercept, it will most likely change."

They watched how Kisame quickly dispatched Anko's snakes and freed the enigmatic Tobi from their reptilian hold. Tobi instantly dropped to Kisame's feet and groveled, "Thank you Kisame-sempai. Tobi isn't worthy of your help. Thank you. Thank you."

"Quit it you idiot," Kisame growled as he returned to stand next to Itachi and dragged Tobi after him as the masked wearing Akatsuki member hugged Kisame's leg thanking the blue skinned Akatsuki member repeatedly.

"I said quit it," Kisame growled and lifted his free foot to kick Tobi.

"Missed me," Tobi giggled as he expertly dodged the kick with skills that were unbelievable nimble. "Missed me again," Tobi laughed and clapped his hands as Kisame swung his sword at the hopping Akatsuki member.

"Damn it, stand still you crazy grasshopper," Kisame shouted and chased the comrade he saved around the clearing.

"Kisame," Itachi called for his partner in a calm of voice that froze the blue skinned Akatsuki in place. Itachi then put his full attention back towards Kakashi, "Ignore those two idiots Kakashi-san. It is however quite funny that we run into you, we were just on our way to get Naruto-san…"

"Sempai! Who is Naruto?" Tobi screamed from the top of his lungs from across the clearing where he sat hunched over.

"Moron that's the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki," Kisame yelled back and grumbled several curses that were incoherently to Kakashi.

"Naruto? Where is he?" Kakashi demanded in shock.

Itachi raised an eye brow at the peculiar question. "Do not play games with us Kakashi. We know that Naruto is somewhere in Lighting Country. Why don't you share the information about his mission details and we can be on our way."

"Never," Kakashi hissed. _"Son of a… so it was the Kyuubi's chakra that we felt,"_ Kakashi berated himself in his mind. _"I should have listened; we should have gone to investigate."_

"Then it appears the only way for us to get that information is to kill all of you except one," Itachi replied coldly to which Kisame only grinned.

"Sempai help!" Tobi's voice once more echoed across the clearing in panic. "There are more of them. They got Tobi again," the masked idiot wept as he was tightly held up side down in the air by several wooden protrusions that had grown out of the ground.

"How did Deidara stay sane with this idiot as his partner?" Kisame growled in wonderment as he looked over his shoulder towards Tobi. "I would have killed Tobi long ago if I had been in Deidara's position."

"Tobi has his uses," Itachi muttered and didn't bother to look at the captured Tobi. "So Kakashi, how will it be? Shall we fight to the death, one you and your little gang of rag tags will lose or would you be so kind to share the questioned information with us?"

"Even if we knew where the Gaki is," Anko spat. "We would never tell you idiots."

"Interesting Kakashi-san," Itachi said. "It appears you yourself don't know about Naruto's whereabouts. Now what could be the reason behind that?"

"Itachi-sempai," Tobi whined.

"Help yourself Tobi," Itachi said quietly. "I grow tired of this." The Uchiha rumbled and discreetly studied the Copy-nin in front of him.

"RICHARD!" Tobi suddenly screamed in joy at seeing the rabbit hop beneath him and the masked Akatsuki tried to grab the furry animal but only managed to scare the rabbit away. "No don't leave me again Richard. Come back to Tobi. Tobi will even feed you dango! Rabbit's like dango, right Sempai?"

"Dango?" Anko's head snapped towards Tobi and the kunoichi vanished in a Leaf shunshin only to reappear next to the tied up Tobi. She pressed her body against his and purred, "Anko likes dango, and Anko will be your little bunny girl if you give her your dango."

"Sempai help," Tobi yelled over in childish panic. "The crazy snake woman is molesting me."

"We really are surrounded by a bunch of idiots aren't we Kakashi-san?" Itachi asked with a hint of amusement. The Uchiha turned and began to walk away, "Kisame let's go. They don't appear to have any information pertaining the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki."

"What about Tobi?" Kisame asked as he looked towards their third Akatsuki member as he still hung suspended in the air by wooden protrusions. He shook his head and kicked the ground in a childish manner before following his partner and mumbling, "What a lucky shit. He is motor boating the Leaf kunoichi. I wish I had some dango for her, if she lets him do that to her, I wonder what I could make her do for me."

"Hn," Itachi grunted and ignored the display of Anko rubbing her boobs into Tobi's face in an attempt to bum dango of the idiot Akatsuki.

"Kakashi," Gai muttered to his eternal rival. "What should we do? Should we stop them?"

"No," Kakashi said as he watched Itachi and Kisame leave. "Tenzo tell everyone to come out, I have decided that we should actively search for Naruto. I have to admit that pretending to search for Akatsuki members while covertly looking for Naruto is not to his or our best interest."

"Right away," Tenzo spoke up through a wood clone that had appeared half way out of the ground in front of Kakashi.

It took only a minute for everyone to assemble in the clearing and Kakashi looked over towards Anko as she had dropped her coat now and the silver haired Jonin sighed. "What a troublesome woman. A simple word drives her to forget everything around her. Tenzo release that Tobi character and let's hope he is faster in escaping than Anko is in playing catch up."

"Are you sure Kakashi-san," Iruka spoke up voicing everyone else's thoughts out loud.

"Yes," Kakashi replied and nodded towards Tenzo to release Tobi. "I am pretty sure Tobi could have escaped from Tenzo's Mokuton grasp if he'd really wanted to. Itachi and Kisame wouldn't have left him behind, if he couldn't save himself. Don't forget he is a member of Akatsuki, none of them are pushovers to be taken lightly."

"Hai sempai," Tenzo replied and Anko's yell of surprise that quickly turned to an angry whine echoed across the clearing.

"Why did you do that?" She complained as she slipped back into her coat and walked towards the gathered group. "He hadn't given me his dango yet. I bet you're just jealous that you can't stick your face into my boobs," Anko said suggestively and cupped her breasts in a tease. "If you have dango, I might let you. How about it Yuugao-chan, will you give me dango?"

Several groans and nose bleeds followed as every male in the group lay twitching in the dirt with a drooling expression on their faces as their imagination ran wild. Yuugao sighed and slowly shook her head as Anko bounced on her feet and giggled like a schoolgirl. "Seriously Anko, do you have to do this every time we go on missions together?"

"Aw but Yuugao-chan," Anko whined and looked at the purple haired Anbu with big round eyes. "But I really mean it. Get some dango and I let you do anything to me, I promise." Anko rubbed against her female group partner suggestively.

"Anko please, is it too much to ask for some manners," Yuugao asked and moved away from a pouting Anko. "Help me wake everyone up so we can discuss our next steps. Kakashi said he had changed his mind."

"Fine," Anko huffed and walked towards Iruka. She lowered herself on top of him and straddled his waist. She leaned over and whispered into Iruka's ear while grinding against the Chunin. "Iruka-kun will you get me some dango?"

Iruka groaned and his eye lids fluttered awake but before he could realize what was happening to him, Anko was violently pulled off him by Yuugao. "W-what happened?" Iruka asked as Yuugao helped him to his feet.

"Just one of Anko's silly pranks," Yuugao replied and judgingly studied Iruka.

Yuugao's otherwise neutral expression turned somewhat angry as Iruka blushed as he remembered what Anko had done and the purple haired woman abruptly turned away from him without saying another word. Iruka realized that he had done something wrong but didn't know what. He watched Yuugao walk away from him and their little group, only to stand a little off to the side with her head hanging low in thought. Thinking it would be best to leave the woman alone for now, Iruka waited for everyone else to recover.

Kakashi eventually cleared his throat to get everyone's attention and turned to address everyone. "It seems that Akatsuki believes that Naruto is in Lightning Country. Therefore I have decided that we suspend this farce of looking for the Akatsuki base and instead concentrate on finding Naruto. The time to fight Akatsuki has not yet come. We are too few to risk needless battles."

"But wouldn't every dead Akatsuki mean that Naruto is better protected from them?" The quiet Genma spoke up.

"It would," Kakashi agreed. "But what would be the costs to kill one of them? We barely survived against Deidara and Zetsu. Strong as they might have been, Itachi and Kisame are on a totally different level. No, it was best to let them leave."

"So what are our plans now? We can't go back to Konoha and simply pretend that we killed off Akatsuki or tell them that we refuse to hunt down that organization." Gai asked Kakashi but made sure that everyone in their group could voice their opinions.

"Fuck Danzo," Anko growled. "And fuck Akatsuki. Let's go find the brat and rescue his scrawny ass from himself, Danzo, and Akatsuki. He still owes us answers to whether he killed Tsunade-sama and Sakura-san."

"I agree with Anko-san," Kakashi said and waited for everyone else to speak up.

"Gomen," Iruka spoke and studied the many faces around him. "I guess it's not a secret about how much I care for Naruto and even though I know that killing off Akatsuki now would be beneficial to Naruto, it is not a guarantee for victory. I'll have to say that I agree with Anko and Kakashi. Let's go find Naruto so we can question him about the deaths of the Godaime Hokage and Sakura-chan. After that we can still decide what our next steps ought to be."

"Yosh! This is a most youthful decision," Gai yelled and pumped his fist into the air. "Let's travel towards Lightning Country as well and find Naruto-kun before Akatsuki does."

* * *

**Author's Notes:**

Greeting's fellow fans. I hope you enjoyed this update to the story. I'd like to address four points.

1. Naruto's transformation into the Kyuubi from the previous chapter will NOT affect him physically. What I mean is that he won't grow a tail or fox ears or all that other furry shit.

2. I didn't forget about Sakura's new technique and having the need to name it. I just haven't gotten around to it yet, or found a good place to introduce it. But rest assured, it's not forgotten.

3. There will be a small time skip of a one or two weeks next chapter. Hope none of you mind but I feel like the story needs to pick up in pace again.

4. I thought Tobi needed to appear and I hope the comical relief was really a relief and not a painful waste of text. If anyone is wondering, the name Richard for the rabbit comes from an online comic I read from time to time that is called Looking For Group and Richard is the evil homicidal Warlock that tends to love a certain rabbit.

Now feel free to leave your reviews.

Also, some of you might have realized but yesterday I uploaded a prologue to a new story. The story is called **Supreme Genetics – Creation of a Bloodline** and is a **Naru/Saku/Hina** pairing. It is also a co-written story between myself and KingKakashi. So don't forget to head on over to my profile and check out that new story.


	9. Unforeseen Meetings

**Fūrinkazan**

Chapter - 8

"Unforeseen Meetings"

* * *

Normality had finally returned to the Nara residence after the wedding between Nara Shikamaru and Sabaku Temari. The guests of honor from Suna had left after staying for two long weeks in Konoha and during that time, just as Shikamaru had suspected, Danzo had tried and to some degree with success, to solidify his grasp on Konoha's Hokage position.

The Daimyo from the Land of Fire hadn't spend a day without being pestered by Danzo or one of his supporters, urging the Lord to officially declare Danzo as the new Hokage. And finally on the day the Daimyo of the Wind, his advisory council, and the Kazekage along with his shinobi forces were leaving to return to their own country, the Fire Lord declared Danzo to be the Rokudaime Hokage. And as a sign of strength and unity, both Daimyos declared a new joint Alliance of unprecedented cooperation between Sunagakure and Konohagakure and if one were to believe their words, this new Alliance would transcend time and space and with their combined strength, nothing would or could stand in their way. This new Alliance literally abolished their borders and freely opened them to one another for true free trade and travel.

To Shikamaru and the other Resistance Leaders, this was a sign that Danzo's poisonous influence and mad dreams for world domination had successfully infected the Daimyos from the Land of Fire and Wind. And thanks to Gaara being the Kazekage and to Shizune who acted to be an obedient follower of Danzo, the Resistance always had the most up to date information on Danzo's moves.

And as Shikamaru lay on the roof to watch the clouds pass by, he sighed in discomfort as he listened to Choji inform him to the reason behind Ino missing out on his wedding to Temari. These past two weeks of married life had flown by Shikamaru so quickly that he had missed Ino's downfall into alcohol, sex, and drugs. _"No,"_ Shikamaru corrected himself in his mind. _"Luckily Choji stopped her in time before Ino would have done something she would regret later on."_

"And you are certain that Ino approached Danzo?"

"Yes Shikamaru," Choji replied and for a change the chubby Akimichi wasn't stuffing his face with food, which told Shikamaru plenty. Choji was dead serious about this and Shikamaru could see the hurt in Choji's soft eyes as his longtime friend watched helplessly the girl he secretly loved descend into darkness.

"Troublesome," Shikamaru muttered as he lay on his back in his favorite spot. It was quiet between the two friends as both were caught up in their thoughts and it was Choji that broke it first.

"Shikamaru…"

"You want to follow her don't you?" Shikamaru asked as he interrupted Choji.

"She's in pain Shikamaru," Choji said softly and looked dejected.

"Of course she is," Shikamaru replied and sat up as his palms rested on his knees as Shikamaru leaned onto them for support as he looked out over Konoha from the roof they were on. "She lost her best friend and that at the hands of someone close to us too. It'll take time but she'll come around Choji."

"I… I don't know Shikamaru," Choji replied weakly. "You haven't seen her; she has changed, changed a lot. Ino is full of grief and hate and wants to hunt down Naruto and kill him, she wants revenge for Sakura."

Shikamaru looked at his depressed friend and in his mind sighed as he thought, _"I am sorry that I can't tell you Choji or tell Ino but you two had your chance to eventually hear from me that Sakura is indeed still alive and that this is all just an elaborate plot by Danzo to usurp power."_

"You should have seen her Shikamaru," Choji spoke and looked at his meaty hands. "When I walked into that bar, she was completely gone and about to take a hit from this new drug out of the capital, while at the same time sitting on some random guys lap moaning as the dude touched and kissed her. That wasn't the Ino we know," Choji finished in anger as his hands trembled in fury.

"But you got her out of there Choji," Shikamaru said hoping to calm his friend. "You got there in time to stop her from doing something she would have regretted her entire life. You stopped her from descending into a hell of a life that is impossible to return from unscathed…"

"But now she hates me," Choji shouted in anger. "She yelled at me for getting her out of that slum. She hit me and cried for hours, yelling that I was at fault, that it was my fault that Sakura died and… and then she kissed me, pleaded with me to take away her pain…"

"Choji you didn't," Shikamaru asked suddenly as he realized what Choji was about to say.

"Of course I didn't," Choji growled and almost shouted. "Do you really think I would steep so low as to use her when she is at her weakest? I refused her, told her that she wasn't thinking clear and that's when she said she hated me and wouldn't want to see me anymore. And you know what is worst… She traded in one potential hellish life for another. She walked straight into the Hokage's office and demanded to be put into the Hunter-nin corps."

"Damn," Shikamaru muttered under his breath as he imagined the carefree Ino turn into a stone cold and emotionless killer.

"But her father intervened," Choji continued. "Inoichi begged the Hokage to remove Ino from the Hunter-nin corps before she could even begin her first day of that long, grueling, and heartless career."

"How did Danzo respond?"

"He told Inoichi that he was sorry but that this was Ino's decision," Choji spat in disgust. "Inoichi argued that Ino wasn't mentally stable at the moment and not fit to make life changing decisions such as entering the darkest branch of Anbu life."

"A valid argument," Shikamaru said and nodded absentmindedly in approval. "What happened then?"

"I don't know," Choji replied sadly. "I only know what Inoichi told me since I informed him of Ino's request to join the Hunter-nin corps. But he did tell me that the Hokage had agreed for the time being to disallow Ino from entering the Hunter-nin division. However, since her Anbu application was already processed and approved, she could no longer leave Anbu…"

"Wait hold that thought," Shikamaru interrupted. "You said Ino went to Danzo and demanded to be put into the Hunter-nin corps and they took only a day to process and approve her application? That is way too fast. Normally between applying to Anbu and getting one's application processed, it takes weeks if not months. Something surely isn't right with how quickly Ino got into Anbu…"

"I know," Choji replied. "The Hokage is up to something and I am sure he is using Ino's grief for his advantage but I don't know for what purpose."

_"I have a few ideas,"_ Shikamaru thought as he could imagine Danzo's use of Ino's new hate for Naruto to his benefit in staying in power. A Yamanaka under his obedient control would be a dangerous weapon indeed.

"Okay, so what did Inoichi-san achieve for Ino?"

"I was told that Ino was transferred to the Interrogation department during her training to become a Hunter-nin and Interrogation specialist. Being trained in both of those Anbu fields would take Ino double if not triple the time it would normally take to become a full fledged Hunter-nin. She also wouldn't have to undergo the baptism by fire, where she is tossed into the world with minimum Anbu knowledge and a standing order to retrieve the corpse of an A-class missing-nin."

"I see. Since she is to become an Interrogation specialist as well, Danzo has decided to actually have Ino become a full fledged Anbu first by attending the Anbu Academy, before sending her into the Hunter-nin corps?"

"Yes," Choji replied and fell quiet.

"You want to follow her don't you?" Shikamaru asked as his friend was silent. "You don't want to let her go down that dark road by herself… am I right?"

"Yes," Choji muttered weakly and looked at Shikamaru. "I just thought you needed to know and that you would understand. We will always be a team but…"

"Choji I'll understand. Go follow her, watch over her, and protect her. Don't leave her side and I am certain that with your help, Ino will survive that life style and return to us eventually. It will take time, but I trust you, you'll do the right thing." Shikamaru said and offered a weak smile. "Now go and be careful."

"Thank you Shikamaru," Choji said and wiped a tear away. "I'll promise that I will look out for Ino."

_"I am sorry Choji,"_ Shikamaru thought as he watched his friend walk away. _"I wish I could help you and Ino but revealing the truth to Ino at this point is too dangerous._

Shikamaru sighed and briefly closed his eyes. They opened again when he felt a new presence next to him and he grunted, "Troublesome…"

"Hate you too my husband," Temari said in amusement and joined Shikamaru in watching the clouds pass by. "I take it Choji had some bad news to bring. Is everything alright? Is there anything I can do to help?"

"No," Shikamaru replied with a sad sigh. "It's best I don't think about it. Let's go home, I'm hungry."

* * *

The road they were traveling on was filled with people and Naruto and Sakura received strange looks as they walked towards the village that was quickly growing in the distance. Naruto groaned in strain as he readjusted the body he was currently carrying, "Man this guy becomes heavy after a while."

"Why don't you let me carry him for a change?" Sakura suggested.

"No, no," Naruto quickly said and turned his face to look at her and smiled. "I was the one that accidently killed him, so I should carry him."

Sakura pouted, "You're just saying that… You didn't really kill him you know. You just spooked him out and when I collapsed the ground underneath him, he fell into that gorge. If anyone can claim killing him, it would have to be me."

"But I picked out the location," Naruto countered. "It was my decision to chase him into that valley, him falling into that gorge we didn't know about was simply bad luck. Besides, what kind of husband would I be if I let my wife do all the heavy lifting?"

"I still think you should let me help out," Sakura protested but smiled. "And stop with the sweet talk, it doesn't suit you all that much."

"Well it doesn't matter anymore," Naruto said happily as they stopped in front of a massive gate and dropped the corpse.

"State your attentions," A Kumo shinobi questioned them as he walked over.

"Ah greetings," Naruto responded and smiled. "We have come to return something that was lost to one of your clans."

"Bounty Hunters?" The Kumo shinobi sneered in disgust as he connected the dots as his eyes wandered from Naruto to the corpse and back up to Naruto. "Very well, I will inform the Raikage. You may wait here."

"But…"

"Naruto let it go," Sakura whispered to him as she saw several Kumo guards watch them suspiciously. "It's better for us to wait out here and let them think we're Bounty Hunters. That way they won't suspect too much."

"Fine," Naruto muttered and stuffed his hands into his pockets. "I just hope we get the reward money."

"Why shouldn't we?" Sakura asked.

"Well," Naruto said as he looked at the corpse. "He is dead and the bounty stated for him to be alive."

"Hm," Sakura mused as she was re-thinking their predicament. Somehow her mind suddenly flashed images from her Genin days and she suddenly had an answer to their predicament. "Remember our encounter with Zabuza and how Sensei explained the importance of Hunter-nins deposing of the corpses?" Sakura asked Naruto and deliberately left out Kakashi's name in order to keep their anonymity.

"Ah I get it," Naruto nodded and smiled at Sakura approvingly.

They ended up having to wait for several hours in which Naruto's complaints of having to wait slowly grew into outright disrespect and insults directed at the Kumo guards and their Kage.

"What the hell is taking them so long?" Naruto shouted in frustration. "We don't have all day and this corpse is certainly starting to smell. I didn't think Kumo is run this inefficiently; I bet I can do a much better job at being Raikage than the idiot who's in charge right now."

"Naruto," Sakura warned him sternly as she eyed the Kumo guards wearily. "Can you please stop and calm down. I don't want to run from an entire village because you insulted their Kage."

"Aw c'mon Sakura-chan," Naruto whined. "I think Kumo's powers are greatly exaggerated. I mean look at this poor fellow," Naruto nudged the dead shinobi with his foot. "He died from falling into a gorge. Seriously, who dies from that? Ah," Naruto called out to her and held up his hand as he saw a dangerous angry frown appear on Sakura's face. "Don't say it… I know. Calm down."

"Right," Sakura responded with a smile. She nudged her head towards the gate and said, "Besides, I believe our waiting time is over. That is the Raikage coming our way. Honestly it is a bit strange for a Kage to greet Bounty Hunters but not unheard of… Be at your best Naruto-kun."

"Right," Naruto sarcastically replied and rolled his eyes as he received a gentle playful punch to his shoulder by Sakura.

"So I am told that you have something or rather someone that belongs to Kumo?" The Raikage spoke as he neared. One of the guards stepped up to the giant Kage and whispered into his ear. The man nodded and his eyes narrowed at Naruto and Sakura.

"You should know that we don't like Bounty Hunters very much. Let alone those that believe Kumo to be weak and show a degree of disrespect towards our leader." The Raikage spoke in anger. "Now, who do you have there?"

"I am sorry Raikage-sama," Sakura stepped forward and bowed in respect. "My husband didn't mean to disrespect Kumogakure or devalue your strength. It's just he is a terribly impatient man and tends to speak before thinking."

"Is that so?" The Raikage asked and studied Sakura intently.

"Yes it is," Sakura replied. "Now about the issue at hand…"

"You look very familiar," The Raikage suddenly said and interrupted Sakura mid sentence. "Both of you… Tell me which village do you hail from?"

"Sunagakure," Naruto quickly replied and kept with their cover story that they had used since they entered Lightning Country. "Well a small village in the Wind Country near Suna."

"My mistake," the Raikage mused as he rubbed his chin in thought. "For a minute there I thought you were from Konoha."

"Konoha?" Naruto shouted and laughed nervously as he rubbed the back of his head. "Please we aren't no tree huggers."

"I guess you are right. After all, if your young wife here was to have pink hair, she would have some explaining to do because last I heard she died a couple of weeks ago." The Raikage said and watched their reactions carefully.

"Do I look like I have pink hair?" Sakura growled angrily and pointed at her ruby red hair as she stopped Naruto from saying something that might betray them. "Do I look like I am dead?"

_"Damn it, just dying my hair red isn't working. I think I actually have to grow my hair out again and also change my appearance a little more,"_ Sakura thought in panic. _"I didn't expect being Shishou's apprentice would draw the attention of other Kages. Perhaps we should change our names too,"_ she thought again and briefly looked out of the corner of her eyes at Naruto. _"But I don't think Naruto can control himself. He would probably let my real name slip during a conversation and that would be bad. No, keeping our real names would be easier for him."_

The Raikage bellowed in laughter and shook his head, "No you don't seem to be. Too bad that you aren't who I thought you were because if you were, I would offer you a place amongst the ranks of Kumogakure's elite. We certainly could use a medic with skills that are rumored to be on par with the Hokage. Now," the Raikage switched gears. "Who did you bring back to us and what do I owe you?"

"Well the request said to bring him back alive and that was the plan," Sakura said and tore out a small page out of their bounty book that they were given from Naruto's contact. "However, we had a small accident and he died during the recovery phase."

The Raikage looked at the page and frowned, "Ah the young Takahashi. A shame really, him betraying the wishes of his deceased parents. Well his bounty states to bring him back alive and you didn't."

"That might be true Raikage-dono," Sakura interrupted the Raikage with as much courtesy as she had learned during her apprenticeship to Tsunade. "However, we have returned his body to you, which I am sure, is worth something. After all, it is quite uncommon to pay a Reward of five hundred thousand ryō for a simple Chuunin, who ran away from his village."

The Raikage growled, "I see you know what you are talking about. Very well, I'll pay you thirty percent of the reward money."

"Fifty," Naruto responded. "And not a cent less or we will sell his body to the nearest black market doctor."

"And what makes you think that I'll let you take the body," the Raikage asked as he looked Naruto in the eyes. "Or let you leave Kumo alive after showing such disrespect."

"And what makes you think that you can stop us?" Naruto taunted but kept his body language relaxed.

Naruto and the Raikage stared at each other for several seconds before the Raikage burst out laughing. "I like you boy! Alright, I will award you half of the original reward money. Now if you would follow me to my office so I can give you your cut."

"Ah I think we'll wait here," Naruto replied and smirked. "I like the fresh air."

"Lead the way Raikage-sama," Sakura replied and grabbed Naruto's hand in her own. _"This is perfect,"_ Sakura thought as she gave Naruto the look that told him that she would explain later. _"If we ever were to be questioned about the validity of our marriage and our stay in Kumo, we can actually tell the truth."_

The Raikage chuckled, "so what will it be? Are you coming or staying?"

"We'll follow you," Sakura replied

* * *

"Bunta! Bunta! Where the hell are you?" Pa shouted in anger as he hopped through the jungle of the slugs' domain.

"I swear if I find that overgrown tadpole," Pa muttered as he briefly stopped on top of a giant mushroom that was the size of a tree. "It can't take weeks to ask Katsuyu for Information on Tsunade and Sakura. What the hell has he been doing?"

Suddenly the mushroom shook violently and Pa immediately channeled chakra to his webbed feet in order to stay rooted in place on top of the mushroom's dome. "Now what the hell is going on?" Pa screamed in frustration. "Bunta I swear to you, I will have Ma punish you with her cooking if you don't immediately show yourself."

"Ohayo Pops," a high pitched drunk voice spoke up from behind Pa and startled the Elder toad.

"By the Maker," Pa shouted in surprised anger. He turned around only to come face to face with a giant praying mantis. "Aiki? Is that you? What the hell are you doing here?"

The Mantis burped and Pa was forced to pluck his nose from the alcoholic stench that suddenly enveloped him. "Never mind my asking," Pa muttered nosily. "You clearly have been drinking. I wonder though, have you seen Gamabunta by any chance?"

"Gama-who?" Aiki asked in a slur and giggled.

"My overgrown son," Pa growled and saw something that he wished he'd never seen. "I am afraid to ask but why are you wearing a purple tutu?"

"Tu…tu?" Aiki repeated the word and his massive head swiveled in an awkward way around for him to see. "That stinking, no good for nothing frog," Aiki bellowed and ran in circles like a dog who was chasing his own tail.

"I guess this means that you have seen Gamabunta," Pa sighed and shook his head in disappointment. "What the hell is that child thinking? He knows how important this is."

"BUNTA YOU IMMATURE OVERGROWN TADPOLE," Aiki bellowed in alcoholic rage only to lose his balance and fell over. "WAIT UNTIL I GET MY CLAWS ON YOU…"

"I am just going to be leaving," Pa muttered as he watched the praying mantis flounder around on the ground as Aiki tried to rise.

Elsewhere a giant orange toad laughed heartily as he emptied another barrel of sake, "It appears our dear Aiki has found his tutu Katsuyu."

"It appears so," Katsuyu chuckled and lowered its head to drink out of her own barrel. "Do you think he will return for revenge?"

"Let him," Gamabunta laughed again, "If he even remembers which way to hop. I still can't believe you convinced him into another drinking contest, how did you do it?"

"You'd be surprised what you can achieve with a little persuasion," Katsuyu replied smugly and leaned towards Gamabunta and whispered into the toad's ear hole.

"No way, get the fuck out!" Gamabunta exclaimed in shocked surprise. "He really did?"

Katsuyu nodded and Gamabunta fell over and rolled on the floor laughing. "I can't believe this… Aiki and Manda? Oh you are such an evil slug Katsuyu to make him think that…"

"BUNTA!" Pa's voice suddenly roared in the clearing where the giant toad and slug had decided to hold their little drinking contest. "WHERE THE HELL have you been? For weeks Bunta, for weeks Ma and I have been waiting for your return to hear of news from Katsuyu in regards to the rumors of Tsunade-sama and Sakura-san dying at Naruto's hands. FOR WEEKS!" Pa added once more in anger and menacingly swung his cane in the air.

"P-Pa!" Gamabunta called out in surprise. "I… what are you doing here?"

"What am I doing here?" Pa growled and jumped into the air and whacked Gamabunta's head with his cane. "Didn't you pay attention? I came here to find out why you were taking so long to get a simple answer from Katsuyu-san."

"Geez Pa," Gamabunta grumbled and rubbed the sore spot that was growing on his massive head.

"Don't you Pa me Bunta," Pa shouted. "Now tell me, the both of you, what is going on? Are the rumors true? Did Naruto-kun really kill Tsunade-hime?"

"No, he did not." Katsuyu replied musically. "Sakura-san had summoned one of my daughters to her aid and when the young one had returned from fulfilling Sakura-san's request, she bore a message from her as well."

"A message?" Pa asked with interest. "What did it say?"

"Sakura-san had told my daughter that Orochimaru had attacked Tsunade-hime and Naruto-kun, however, Sakura-san reported that Tsunade-hime wasn't herself because she didn't help Naruto-kun fend off Orochimaru's attackers. Naruto-san was gravely injured during that encounter and Sakura-san had fled with Naruto and they are now hiding from Konoha and are on the run." Katsuyu reported.

"Was there anything else?" Pa asked in concern at the revelation behind Tsunade apparently being in cahoots with Orochimaru.

"There was one more thing," Katsuyu replied, her melodic voice layered with concern and uncertainty. "Sakura-san has asked of the slug tribe to ignore any summoning requests from Tsunade-hime for the time being. She said that she would contact me again in the future."

"And what have you decided Katsuyu-san?" Pa asked. "Have you suspended the binding summoning contract with Tsunade-hime?"

"In a way, I have. I have ordered my children to ignore Tsunade-hime's summons. I alone however, intend to answer her calls in order to find answers."

"That is probably what I would have done too," Pa muttered in thought before looking at the giant white slug. "Do you by any chance currently know where Sakura-san and Naruto-kun are?"

"I do not," Katsuyu replied dejected. "However, dear Aiki-kun has mentioned that he had run into them near the border of Lightning Country."

"Yes, Aiki-san has told me the same several weeks ago," Pa replied. "If Naruto and Sakura are in danger and truly running from Konoha, we need to find out why. I will send a few spy toads into Konoha and have them report back to me. In the meantime, we should think of a way of finding Naruto and Sakura and bring them here for questioning, protection, and training. It is time that Naruto-san learns the way of the toads."

"Huh?" Gamabunta grumbled and raised a nonexistent eye brow. "You plan on teaching him the Sage Techniques Pa?"

"Yes I do. It is time that Naruto hears about the prophecy and of Jiraiya's last wish," Pa replied. "But how do we get him to come to us, let alone find him?"

"Well we could always reverse summon him to us," Gamabunta grumbled and raised another sake barrel to his mouth.

"Bunta you're brilliant," Pa exclaimed happily. "Of course that is how we'll do it. I'll set everything up right away so we can summon him to us immediately."

"What about his Sakura chic?" Bunta asked and shook the barrel of sake next to his ear hole in order to determine whether the drum was truly empty.

"Hm," Pa mused in thought as he tugged on his beard. His eyes went up to look at the giant slug in front of him. "Katsuyu-san why don't you perform a reverse summon on her as well? They are traveling together and if both are really running from Konoha it's safest to have both here."

"As you wish Elder-sama," Katsuyu replied. "Sakura-hime has been slacking in studying our techniques. Perhaps this is the perfect opportunity for her to learn from us as well."

"Great! Then it is settled," Pa cheered. "I will immediately get the scroll. I suggest you'll do the same."

* * *

"Two hundred and fifty thousand ryō," the Raikage said and put a stack of money on his desk. "That is the most I can offer you for Takahashi's corpse and this already is a generous offer."

"We'll take it," Naruto replied and pocketed the money. "Now if you'll excuse us, we would like to spend some of this money in your village and then be on our way again."

"Certainly," the Raikage replied and stood from his chair and offered his hand.

Naruto shook the hand and smiled, "Thanks for the business and sorry for being an impatient bastard."

The Raikage laughed and simply nodded. However, when Sakura shook the Kage's hand, she suddenly yelped in surprise as she was roughly pulled into the Raikage's arms. His left arm was snaked around her throat while his right hand held a kunai to her stomach.

"Sakura-chan," Naruto shouted in angered surprise and held a kunai of his own in his hands as he got into a fighting stance.

"Easy there boy," the Raikage warned as Kumo Anbu appeared with their swords drawn and held at Naruto's throat. "Now I think it's time that you two answer a few questions. Let's start with your redheaded wife here."

"No," Naruto growled. "Let her go or…"

"Or what?" The Raikage bellowed. "I'll kill her before you can even make a move. So you better watch your mouth and start answering some questions."

"Naruto relax," Sakura choked out as the Raikage's muscular arm was tightly secured against her throat. "Everything will be fine."

"But Sakura-chan," Naruto interjected and held a worried expression.

"Enough," the Raikage bellowed and tightened his hold on Sakura's throat. "Now I have no fucking idea who you are boy, but I am beyond sure that this wife of yours is the believed to be dead apprentice to the late Hokage Senju Tsunade. Now I am curious to know why she is standing in my office, demanding money for a bounty, pretending to be your wife, and more importantly why she became a missing-nin."

"And I know you two aren't on a mission to assassinate me," the Raikage continued as he yelled in anger. "Konoha doesn't have the guts to do that."

"Please," Naruto pleaded. "Sakura-chan really is my wife. Please don't hurt her…"

In that instant the door to the office of the Raikage opened and a dark muscular man walked in, who raised an arm in greeting. "Bro what the hell is going on in here? I could hear you yelling out on the streets?"

"Bee not now," the Raikage growled as he kept his eyes on Naruto.

_"Bee?"_ Naruto thought and slowly turned his head to take a look at the man that had entered behind him. _"Oh no,"_ Naruto finished as he realized the Hachibi Jinchuuriki had entered and was less than a few feet away from him.

"You," Killer Bee suddenly yelled in recognition at seeing Naruto and before anyone could react, Naruto was impaled by one of Killer Bee's katana.

"No," Sakura croaked in shock as the room fell deathly quiet as Naruto spit up blood and slowly went limb while still being impaled by the katana. Sakura's eyes watered and she screamed in panic and tried to struggle out of the Raikage's hold, "Naruto! Naruto!"

"W-what… Why the hell did you do this Bee?" The Raikage asked stunned and was suddenly elbowed hard by Sakura. The wind was knocked out of him and he let go of her and she immediately rushed towards Naruto and lunged forward with a chakra enhanced punch.

Her fist connected with Killer Bee's outstretched palm, who thought to easily block Sakura's punch, but his eyes widened as he felt his bones shatter and his entire mass suddenly flying across the room only to impact the wall and crashing through it.

"Naruto hang in there," Sakura screamed with tears running down her face as she dropped to her knees next to the blond. Her hands immediately glowed green with chakra and she pulled out the katana before placing her hands over the wound in order to heal the damage. "Naruto just hang in there," she pleaded with him as he coughed up more blood. "I can't lose you," she wept and pushed more healing chakra into the wound and willed the tissue to repair itself. "Ever since you got injured by Sasuke…"

"Woah-weeee this tingles," Bee exclaimed and picked himself up from the rubble. "She packs quite a punch, she actually shattered my arm."

The Hachibi Jinchuuriki walked back into the Kage's office and stopped less than two feet away from Sakura and Naruto's prone form as he studied the two. He pulled out another one of his katana's and raised it. "I don't know what's going on," he said. "But I won't let the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki leave Kumo alive" and he swung his sword aiming for Sakura's neck.

And just as the sword was about to connect, both Naruto and Sakura vanished in a puff of smoke and the Hachibi Jinchuuriki found his sword stuck in the wood floor and cursed. "Damn they escaped."

* * *

"Naruto!" Sakura screamed his name again as she sat hunched over him as she channeled more healing chakra into him.

"It's alright Sakura-chan," Naruto's weak voice spoke in a whisper and his eyes smiled up at her. "I won't be going anywhere. I was simply surprised, caught off guard as the Hachibi attacked me."

"The Hachibi?"

"Yes," Naruto replied and his left hand went up to cup Sakura's face. "The Hachibi is the Eight Tailed Beast and that guy whose arm you shattered was the Hachibi Jinchuuriki."

"I… I broke the arm of the Hachibi Jinchuuriki?" Sakura asked stunned to which Naruto only laughed.

"Sakura-chan," he said to get her attention and wiped away one of her dried tears with his left thumb. He felt Sakura's face gently push against his palm in a show of comfort and reassurance, "Babe you broke my bones plenty of times. It's just… I am lucky enough to heal quickly. In the end, even the Jinchuuriki are just humans."

"Oh I think I am about to get sick," a voice suddenly boomed and startled Naruto and Sakura.

Both blinked in surprise and only now just realized that they were no longer in the Raikage's office but instead found themselves in a jungle. They both looked at each other in confusion, asking the same question in silence of whether either of them knew where they are and how they had gotten here, when their thoughts seemed to have been read.

"Bunta if you feel the need to barf up all that sake," Pa shouted in honest anger. "Go far away from here. Now then," the Elder toad spoke and appeared by Naruto's and Sakura's side. "Interesting way to meet you two, it appears us summoning the both of you here was pleasantly timed. Wouldn't you agree Katsuyu?"

"Hai Elder-sama," the sing song voice of the giant slug emanated through the jungle and a tiny replica appeared next to the old toad. "Hello Sakura-hime, it is a pleasure to see you're safe."

"Ka… Katsuyu-sama," Sakura spoke in shock. "W-what… how?"

"Reverse summons my dear young one," the old toad answered and frowned as he saw Naruto stare at him with his mouth gaping wide open. "And you Naruto-chan close your mouth before you end up swallowing a bug or ten."

"What the hell Gama-ojiji," Naruto yelled having finally found his courage to speak again. "What's going on here? Who are you? And why were you able to summon me?"

"Reverse Summon," Pa replied and looked rather peeved off. "And show some respect to your elders' boy."

"Reverse Summon?" Naruto repeated in bafflement. "You can do that?"

Pa nodded, "We sure can. You did sign the contract after all."

"Sweet," Naruto exclaimed and tried to stand up but collapsed to his knees again from the pain in his chest. "Oh guess I need more healing."

"Naruto," Sakura warned him and pushed down his shoulders, forcing him to lie down again. "Give me another few minutes and you are as good as new."

"Right, sorry Sakura-chan," Naruto apologized and smiled at her. His head turned toward the elder toad, "So Oji-ji, what are Sakura-chan and I doing here?"

The miniature form of Katsuyu bobbed her head and looked at the elderly toad next to her as if asking for permission to explain. Pa nodded and the tiny slug began to speak, "Sakura-sama, Naruto-sama, we have summoned you to our realm because we would like to know what has really transpired in Konoha, as well as try to understand how Tsunade-sama was supposedly killed by you."

"Wait a minute," Naruto said in an outburst. "I didn't kill Baa-chan, nor did I ever attack her. It was Orochimaru that attacked us and Sakura-chan came to my rescue." Naruto looked away in shame as he added the rest, "But we were unable to get Baa-chan out of Orochimaru's grasp."

"Excuse me Katsuyu-sama," Sakura interjected as she continued to heal Naruto's wound. "I think it is best that I explain. You see, all of this might be connected to a warning that I received several days prior to the day that Naruto supposedly unleashed the Kyuubi and killed the Leaf delegation heading towards Sunagakure for the Genin Exam. I do not know from whom the warning came but it warned me of a betrayal from someone I did not expect to betray me and I believe Tsunade-sama was meant by that."

"Explain," Pa grumbled in thought. "And please do not leave out any details."

"I can try," Sakura said and concentrated. "You see, I argued with Tsunade-shishou, asked her, begged her to be taken along to Suna but all was in vain. She would budge on the issue and ignored my telling her of the incident in my apartment when I received the strange warning. She ordered me to stay in the village, told me that if I disobeyed that she would punish me. It was strange of her to say something like that to me and even stranger that she wouldn't even pay attention to my worries. So I ended up following in secret. I do not know how Orochimaru attacked and what exactly happened but when I arrived, I saw Naruto about to be killed by Sasuke and Tsunade-sama was a broken wreck by Orochimaru's side, not fighting, not resisting, nothing…"

"It was… it was as if she had lost all control over herself, as if she wasn't herself," Sakura continued. "Later, when we were on the run and I tried to heal Naruto, we were found by a Leaf Anbu. After defeating and interrogating the Anbu, I found out that the one behind everything was Danzo. He poisoned Tsunade-sama and made her obedient to his will. I also found out that Danzo released the information on the Kyuubi and told the village that Naruto killed me and Tsunade-shishou, which obviously is a lie. However, what happened to Tsunade-sama is currently not known by us."

"Hey can't we just summon Baa-chan to us like you did with me and Sakura-chan?" Naruto interrupted.

"Naruto we don't even know if she is still alive," Sakura replied sadly. "Or if she is still the same woman after Danzo destroyed her mind."

"Tsunade-sama is still alive," Katsuyu said. "If a summoner dies, we are made aware of the death."

"Right," Pa agreed and nodded solemnly. "However, we do not know if she will betray us once we summon her here. It is best that we try to locate her first and gather information. I already have some toads covertly observe Konoha. Perhaps," Pa said and turned to address the miniature slug next to him. "Perhaps you can send your children into the village to try and locate Tsunade-sama. You have a blood contract with her and therefore you should be able to find her more easily than my children may."

"As you wish Elder-sama," Katsuyu replied. "My children will do as you request."

"So what will we do in the meantime," Sakura asked as her fingers delicately interlaced with Naruto's for reassurance as she was done healing him and he gently squeezed her hand in return.

"You will spend the time training under us," Pa replied and smiled warmly as he looked at Naruto. "You my boy, I will teach you our sage techniques. It would have been something your father and Jiraiya would have wanted."

"Y-you knew my father?" Naruto asked in surprise and received a simple nod. "Who was he?"

"He was a great man Naruto-chan," Pa replied and looked troubled. "However, due to his early passing he was never able to fully complete the sage training. For now, I think it is best that you concentrate on your training than your father Naruto-chan."

"Aww man," Naruto whined in disappointment. "I want to know who was. Will I ever find out?"

"When the time is right," Pa replied. "You will understand everything."

"Ano Elder-sama," Sakura interjected "But what about me?"

"You my dear, will study under the slugs and Katsuyu in all the medical talents that they have developed as they worked with Tsunade-sama."

"That's so cool Sakura-chan," Naruto cheered and beamed at her in happiness.

Her inner self was ecstatic at the chance to learn from the slugs all the medical techniques that Tsunade had not been able to pass on to her yet but deeply she was saddened because she knew that she and Naruto would have to spend time apart.

"How long?" Sakura asked as she looked at the old toad and the small slug. "How long do Naruto and I have to stay apart from each other?"

"Wait, what?" Naruto asked in astonishment. "We can't train together?"

"A year," Pa replied. "More or less, it depends on how quickly the two of you progress in the training."

"A year?" Naruto repeated in shock and looked at Sakura in pain. He didn't know if he could stay away from her again for such a long time. His three year training trip had been torture but now even this one year seemed like eternity to him, especially after the two had finally become so close that Sakura had willingly married him and become his.

Sakura sighed and smiled weakly at Naruto, knowing what he must have been thinking and she kissed him. "It's only a year Naruto-kun. We can manage that long can't we?"

"I promise to you Sakura-chan, I promise that I will complete my training as quickly as possible." He replied in an earnestly and utterly serious.

"I know you will," Sakura said with a smile. "You always keep your promises." She then turned towards the toad again, "Elder-sama, may Naruto and I spend this last night together?"

"Of course," Pa replied and smiled knowingly. "We will return here tomorrow."

"Thank you," Sakura said and stood up. "Naruto let's go for a walk."

"Okay," Naruto responded and scrambled to his feet.

Pa watched Naruto and Sakura arm in arm with their heads leaned against another and they slowly walked away from him and Katsuyu. A sorrowful sigh escaped his amphibian lips and he softly spoke, "They remind me a little of his parents."

"They do indeed," Gamabunta rumbled from behind and Pa turned around.

"I see you have sobered up son. We'll return here tomorrow to take Naruto to Mt. Myōbokuzan."

Katsuyu tilted her head in thought and said, "I was never privileged to meet his parents but they do remind me a lot of Jiraiya-sama and Tsunade-sama."

"Well true," Bunta said. "But it appears these two have found a mutual understanding…"

"Naruto you baka pervert," Sakura's voice was suddenly heard and the two toads and one slug saw a human missile flying through the air."

"Then again, I have been known for being wrong." Bunta added and chuckled. "By the way, wasn't Tsunade-sama's apprentice pink haired and not red?"

"She is the same one," Katsuyu replied.

Pa nodded, "probably a way to disguise her identity. Being the Godaime Hokage's apprentice and having made a name for herself in the field of medicine, she is a lot more known than Naruto-chan, so it wouldn't be surprising if they changed their appearances a little."

"Regardless," Pa responded. "Let us return tomorrow and give these two some time for their good-byes."

"As you wish," Katsuyu bowed and turned to slither away.

"Let's go son," Pa said.

"Right behind you pops."

* * *

Sakura lay in Naruto's arms as they both sat on top of a giant mushroom and watched the sun slowly set in a sea of purple white. The mushroom forest they found themselves in was as beautiful as it was dangerous. Poisonous insects the size of humans crawled the forest floor, which made the ground a dangerous minefield as one tried to avoid the wild life, while at the same time dodge the flesh eating fauna that seemed to have conquered everything that didn't know how to fight back.

"I am going to miss you," Sakura said softly as she gently caressed the back of Naruto's hand that rested on her stomach as his arms had protectively wrapped around her.

He minutely pulled her closer to him and breathed into her neck, "I know. Training for a year and not being able to see you… I don't know if I can do that."

"It's beautiful isn't it?" Sakura asked as they both watched the last sun rays vanish behind the horizon and the sky was painted in the most vibrant fiery orange they had ever seen.

"Yes it is," Naruto replied and inhaled Sakura's scent in an attempt to burn it into his memory.

"I wish we could stay like this forever," Sakura spoke softly. "It's so peaceful and yet surreal that one could forget the burden we carry."

Naruto didn't say a word as he listened to Sakura. He tried to pull her closer, a show of affection signifying her that he didn't want to let her go. He pressed his face into the nook of her neck and before placing soft featherlike kisses on her exposed skin, he whispered into her ear, "I love you."

**Author Notes:**

**Here is the next long awaited update. I am slowly working my way through the stories and they will receive updates at some point in the near future. Hope you enjoyed this chapter and sorry for those ugly page breaks but Fanfiction is fucking up again and keeps deleting my own page breaks.  
**


	10. Trouble

**Fūrinkazan**

Chapter - 9

"Trouble"

Sakura was in her second week of being apart from Naruto and was extremely annoyed as she sat cross-legged on top of a giant mushroom and watched the hundreds upon hundreds of slugs around her do about their daily life of feeding because that was all Sakura could claim it to be. And exactly that was her problem and cause of her current frustration. To her mind and her eyes, the many slugs of all different sizes were just going from plant to plant to fill their stomachs and nothing more. Katsuyu, however, had claimed that Sakura was not seeing everything and suggested for the pink haired kunoichi to widen her spectrum. Additionally the giant slug chieftain added a stipulation that as long as Sakura failed to truly understand her slug summons, she was barred from learning the techniques that had made Tsunade famous.

"_Stupid fucking training,"_ Sakura growled in her mind as she tried to depict more meaning into the slugs behavior of feeding day in and day out. In frustration and anger at not finding the proper answers, Sakura had slowly begun to nitpick away at the dome of the giant mushroom she had been sitting on. At this time during her second week, the mushroom head no longer consisted of a smooth surface but was now instead littered with tiny craters and looked as if a slug had taken a few too many bites out of the mushroom.

"Damn it why can't I figure this out," Sakura yelled up in frustration as she threw her hands into the air in a show of surrender. She sighed and fell onto her back and looked up into the cloudy sky that looked as depressing as Sakura felt.

"And how is your training coming along Naruto-kun?" She asked herself as her eyes played tricks with her mind by showing a grinning image of Naruto in the sky.

Sakura continued to study the cloudy ocean above her and once more sighed as the dull pain in her chest that was her heart reminded her of how much she was missing the blond knucklehead. She was finally relieved from her pain and frustration by a well-timed distraction courteous of Katsuyu.

"Giving up so soon?" The giant slug summon asked as a miniature form the size of Sakura appeared next to the pink haired woman.

"No," Sakura growled out between clenched teeth. "I'm just taking a break."

"I see," Katsuyu's smaller replica replied in amusement.

"I don't get it," Sakura finally admitted after countless minutes of silence between her and the slug clone. "I know I am smarter than this but… but I can't seem to wrap my head around what you want from me Katsuyu-sama."

"It will come to you in due time Sakura-san," the slug replied and swayed its head as if it was humming a tune inside its head. "It is not an easy task for a human to think like a slug. However, I think I shall give you a hint… In essence, you not only have to think like we do, you have to become one with us. You have to become one with nature. You have to become a slug."

Sakura raised a questionable eye brow and turned her head to look at the slug next to her. "In other words, I have to eat, sleep, and breathe 'slug' in order to understand you? You couldn't have made it any harder?" Sakura finished with sarcasm and sighed. "How am I going to become a slug? That makes no sense, let alone it's not even humanly possible."

"Do not think so linear young one," Katsuyu answered with a hint of amusement. "I do not ask you to become a slug physically but in order to survive the training you have to get an understanding of what we are."

"Okay okay I get it," Sakura said in frustration. "Say Katsuyu-sama, how long did Tsunade-shishou take to grasp your concept and start her training?"

The slug was silent for a few minutes before answering, "If my memory serves me right, Tsunade-sama needed two days."

"Two days?" Sakura exploded in surprise and jumped to her feet in anger. "That drunken, lazy, no good for nothing…" Sakura screamed in rage and smashed her fist into the dome of the mushroom, splitting the giant plant in half. "Two fucking days? Oh hell no," Sakura continued to rage as she jumped off the falling mushroom and immediately went to work at the next best thing that was near her.

Dust and debris flew through the air and the many slugs instantly distanced themselves from Sakura as the pink haired kunoichi unleashed her up pent frustration on the nature around her. Her angry voice echoed through the area as the strong booms of her impacts fleetingly overlay her ranting.

The jungle of mushrooms and other poisonous plants that was the home of the slugs suddenly befell deathly silence and the dust began to slowly settle as Katsuyu slithered into the dust cloud and through the path of destruction that Sakura had left behind and eventually came upon the young woman at the bottom of a giant crater.

"I can't believe Tsunade-shishou only needed two days for this," Katsuyu heard Sakura talk to herself as the woman was lying on her back. "If she ever finds out that it's been taking me two weeks, if not longer… I'll never hear the end of it. Why… why can't I figure this out?" Sakura finished with soft sobs and Katsuyu saw smears of tears running down the pale skin of Sakura's smudged covered face.

"Sakura-san," Katsuyu gently spoke up as the slug arrived at the bottom of the crater. "Are you alright?"

"Yes," Sakura replied weakly and smeared the tears out of her face and sat up. "Sorry for losing my temper…"

"Sakura-san I have to apologize," Katsuyu said. "I didn't want you to feel inferior towards Tsunade-sama. I merely meant to awaken your fighting spirit. In truth, Tsunade-sama had as much hardship in understanding this as you do. She didn't pass this test in two days as I made you believe."

"Don't try to console me," Sakura replied bitterly. "I don't need to be treated with silk gloves. I am not weak."

"I know," Katsuyu replied and was surprised that Sakura didn't believe her. The slug sighed, "Your species is difficult to understand. You always think that the other party is lying or wanting to do you harm, when in fact they are simply trying to help you. Tsunade-sama needed far longer in grasping the concept that I have laid out before you. You can still find the answers you need and still have finished this task before Tsunade-sama ever did."

"Thank you Katsuyu-sama," Sakura spoke dejectedly still not believing the slug chieftain and slowly stood up. "I am going to need some time… I'll be back later tonight."

More frustrating weeks had passed by as Sakura was still unable to give a satisfying answer to the slug chieftain. Sakura's understanding about the slugs' way of life was still as mystifying and confusing as always, however, her frustration in not finding an answer, had taken form of a simmering hatred and bitterness towards the task laid out before her.

Sakura was currently humming an old childhood song her mother had always sung to her whenever Sakura was feeling under the weather and once again, Sakura's mind was far away from finding a solution to her problem. And even though her eyes were watching the slugs feed, Sakura didn't pay an ounce of attention to the spectacle in front of her.

Not thinking about anything in particular, she continued to sit and stare out over the feeding frenzy around her. It would have been a step too far to assume that Sakura had given up in trying to understand the slugs, but at the moment she had utterly lost all motivation. Weeks that had turned into two months of tirelessly spending every waking moment on trying to understand her summons, had worn down the young woman and had drained her of all her energies.

She had been feeling weak, tired, moody, and nauseous for the past few days and it had only gotten worse as the days ran by. Along with feeling terrible, Sakura had been wallowing in self-doubt and couldn't shrug the feeling of having utterly failed not only Katsuyu and herself but Naruto as well.

"All in due time," Sakura muttered quietly in anger as she repeated the slug chieftain's words. "It's all just a load of crap." She finished and rolled onto her sides as she lay on yet another giant mushroom.

Folding her arms under her head, Sakura used them as a cushion and sighed in sadness as she felt tears brim at the edge of her eyes. She just wanted to curl up in a ball and cry in the hopes of relieving herself from the mental anguish she was suffering from. She also missed Naruto more and more and was disappointed and angry at him at the same time for not being there to comfort her. She had expected of him to keep her updated on his progress in becoming the new Toad Sage, yet he had not sent a single message telling her about his training or asking how hers was going.

"Sakura-hime," the soft melodic voice of her personal summon reached her but fell on deaf ears.

"Sakura-hime," the slug repeated softly after Sakura had ignored the animal. "Is everything alright? Mother said that you have been feeling under the weather?"

Sakura sighed and looked out over the jungle before her and saw the slugs eat away at even more plants.

"Would you like anything to eat?" Her slug summon offered in concern at not having been rewarded with more than a simple sigh from Sakura.

"Eat? That's it," Sakura suddenly muttered loudly. "That's why you all spend so much time eating…"

"W-what?" The slug asked in confusion as Sakura suddenly jumped to her feet and hugged the slimy summon.

"Thanks but I am good now," Sakura quickly said. "Where is Katsuyu-sama? I need to tell her. I finally figured it out."

"Figured what out?"

"That damn riddle Katsuyu made me figure out before she would start my training," Sakura shouted as she was already jumping down from the mushroom. "I can't believe I didn't see this sooner."

After minutes of searching for the giant slug chieftain Sakura finally found the large summon near a waterfall dozing in the shade of the jungle canopy.

"Katsuyu-sama," Sakura huffed in exhaustion several times as she reached the giant slug and stood next to the head of the slug. With her hands resting on her knees, Sakura panted heavily and said, "I finally figured it out."

"And what would that be Sakura-san?"

"I know what you meant by telling me that I would have to think like a slug to understand this test of yours," Sakura began speaking but had to stop several times to catch her breath. She slightly frowned and wondered why she felt so taxed but ignored it for now. "The reason behind you and the other slugs eating so many plants are because you build up your immune system and keep a steady amount of poison in your bodies in order to deter predators' from eating you."

"Excellent Sakura-san," Katsuyu spoke and righted herself. "Follow me. We will begin your training right away."

Sakura blinked in surprise and couldn't believe that she had guessed correctly. In truth, she had only gotten the idea by sheer fluke of her brain spazzing out but had decided to at least give it a convincing try. At the moment she was more dumbfounded than happy that she had finally passed and slowly trotted after the slug chieftain and wondered what would await her.

They quickly reached the small cave that was given to Sakura when she had first arrived at the sacred training ground and came to a halt as Katsuyu turned towards Sakura. Sakura felt the studying eye of the slug upon her and after a moment of silence, Sakura's fingers were nervously playing on her red hair that over the weeks of solitude had started to grow long again. The base of her hair had already taken on her natural pink hue as Sakura had decided to no longer dye her hair while training and would wait to do so again until she and Naruto were united again.

"Are you ready Sakura-san?" Katsuyu finally asked. "Are you ready to learn the secret medical techniques that made Tsunade-sama famous in your world?"

"Yes I am," Sakura replied and nodded confidently.

"Are you ready to learn Tsunade-sama's Impure World Resurrection technique that she had discovered while training with us?"

"I… Yes I am," Sakura responded with a hint of hesitation as she was surprised to find out that Tsunade-shishou had discovered that technique while training under the slugs.

"Are you ready to take the risks involved in becoming the next heiress of the slug contract?"

"Hai Katsuyu-sama," Sakura responded once again with confidence and without delay.

"Then I have one last final question for you Sakura-san," Katsuyu said and paused briefly before continuing.

"Are you willing to do as you are told without question?"

"Hai Katsuyu-sama, I am."

"Very well," the slug responded. "Please bring forth the large bowl that is in the back of the cavern.

"Right away," Sakura replied and hurried into the cave only to return seconds later with said bowl. "What do you want me to do with this?"

"Place it on the ground in front of me," Katsuyu ordered and waited for Sakura to step away. And when she could, the slug bent down to the ground and with a deep gurgle, regurgitated a greenish brown mucus into the bowl.

The slug watched Sakura's face contort in disgust as the young woman scrunched her nose at the funky smell that waved up to her from the bowl.

"Katsuyu-sama," Sakura complained believing the actions of the slug to be an accident. "Is everything alright with you?"

"Most certainly," Katsuyu replied in amusement.

"Are you certain?" Sakura asked again as she slowly stepped closer but the stench of the mucus made it extremely difficult as Sakura felt her stomach start to object.

"Now, your first real test is about to begin," Katsuyu started speaking and lowered her head to level with Sakura. "I want you to eat that Sakura-san."

"You want me to do what?" Sakura asked in disbelief as she tried to hold down the content of her stomach as it suddenly profoundly objected to the slug chieftain's order.

"I want you to eat the content of that bowl," Katsuyu repeated. "Eating this is the first step into mastering our medical techniques."

"I think I am going to be sick," Sakura spoke up and suddenly ran away only to stop by a large rock and hurl up her stomach content.

"Sakura-san," Katsuyu said as the slug approached. "It is important that you do this or else you will never master the techniques. This mucus of mine is a concentration of poisons that have been accumulated within my body and the reason behind you ingesting it is for you to build up immunities as well as learn to store the poisons within your body and use them as attacks against your enemies."

"But isn't this dangerous," Sakura asked after she had finally emptied out the rest of her stomach.

"Of course it is," Katsuyu replied. "This mucus is highly concentrated and will kill you. Many have died attempting to pass this step and as long as you have an ounce of hesitation within you, you will be unable to attain the level of chakra control needed to prevent yourself from dying."

"What does this have to do with chakra control?" Sakura asked in curiosity as she spied at the bowl of mucus from afar.

"Because you will have to use your chakra to reshape the poison in order to survive the ordeal," Katsuyu explained and afterwards fell quiet for several minutes. And as the slug studied the young kunoichi, Katsuyu watched Sakura slowly edge closer to the bowl of mucus and saw the pinkette fight with an upsetting stomach the closer the woman got.

"Will you undergo this test Sakura-san?" Katsuyu finally asked.

"I will," Sakura said and finally stood next to the bowl and looked at the greenish brown mucus with uncertainty. "All I have to do is eat this and then shape it with my chakra?" Sakura asked as she briefly looked at the slug behind her. "How will I know that I am doing this right?"

"You will know," Katsuyu replied cryptically. "You will not be alone on this journey."

"I see," Sakura muttered and turned back to look at the mucus only to fight back another stomach hurling nausea. "At least I think so."

Katsuyu watched as Sakura lifted the bowl with her hands and brought the rim of the bowl to her mouth and with loud choking sounds, Sakura quickly downed the content.

"I think I am going to be sick again," Sakura said as she was certain she couldn't keep the mucus down.

"Now it begins," Sakura heard the soft voice from Katsuyu whisper into her ears and suddenly felt her eye lids become heavier with each heart beat she took and was quickly taken by darkness as her limb body fell to the ground.

"Good luck Sakura-san," Katsuyu said even knowing that Sakura was no longer conscious. "May you be guided well through your visions..."

* * *

It had been months since Danzo took the office of the Hokage by betrayal from Tsunade and pronounced the Godaime Hokage and her apprentice dead and Naruto their murderer. He had quickly grasped all power within the village and used the arranged marriage between Nara Shikamaru and Sabaku Temari to further strengthen his ties with the Fire Lord and Sunagakure.

He was now sitting in his new office and was pouring over military maps of the surrounding smaller nations and marked several areas of interest on the maps. His two Root bodyguards stood quietly at his sides and listened to him talk to himself as he studied the maps in front of him and went through hypothetical war tactics.

Hours into standing guard over their Master, they were suddenly pulled out of their thoughtless quietness as Danzo addressed them directly.

"What is the condition of our high profiled guest?" Danzo asked and was referring to Tsunade that had been locked away by him and was left to slowly rot to death in a Root prison cell.

"Still alive," Torune answered.

"Rectify that," Danzo replied without hesitation. "I want her removed permanently and do something about this as well," he said and handed a scroll to his other guard.

"The Raikage sends his regards," Danzo explained as the guard unrolled the scroll. "He is snidely claiming to have captured the demon boy and his whore and challenges me to send some real assassins after him. That brashness alone is making me want to kill that ape but for now, I will need him and his incompetent village intact. Kumo's destruction will come about eventually. For now I'll let him have illusions of grandeur. Fū, go to Kumogakure and find out whether Uzumaki and his pink haired bitch were caught by the Raikage and if that is the case, eliminate them. Make it look like the two took their own lives."

"As you wish Master," both guards replied and instantly vanished only to be replaced by two other Root operatives to stand watch over their Master.

Meanwhile across the village at the Nara compound, Shizune stood waiting at the Nara residence to be seen by Shikamaru.

"Shizune-san? What are you doing here?" Temari asked in surprise as she walked into the foyer of her new home. "I was told a messenger from the Hokage had come to see Shikamaru but we weren't told it was you."

"Hello Temari-san," Shizune greeted the young Nara matriarch and wife to Shikamaru. "I am sorry to drop by unannounced but I urgently need to talk to Shikamaru, it is really important."

Temari tilted her head sideways as she tried to decipher the reason behind Shizune's urgent tone of voice and eventually sighed, "You know I have given up trying to figure out what Shikamaru is up to and I am sure the reason I don't know, is his way of trying to protect me but this is starting to annoy me to no end."

"I am sorry?" Shizune asked in bewilderment. "What are you talking about Temari-san?"

"Never mind," Temari replied dejectedly. "I take it asking you for the reason behind wanting to see my husband so urgently has something to do with the reason behind Hinata's and Shino's presence in his father's study. Please follow me. I'll lead you to them."

"Thank you," Shizune replied and followed the former Suna kunoichi.

A small knock announced the arrival of a visitor and the door to his father's study opened immediately and Shikamaru's eye brow rose in question as he saw Shizune enter. He waited for a few seconds for the door to close before he asked Shizune, "I thought we had agreed to keep our contact to a minimum Shizune?"

"I know," Shizune replied hastily. "However, I believe what I have to tell you, warrants the risk involved."

Shikamaru nodded, "Alright what is it?"

"This here," Shizune said and brought forth a small scroll from within one of her sleeves, "Arrived today from Kumogakure. You should read this Shikamaru."

"Okay," Shikamaru answered and stood up to reach for the scroll. His eyes scanned the message and grew wide in surprise at the context. "Is… is this true?"

"It appears so," Shizune replied. "Danzo was furious when he read this message and instantly told me to disappear from his sight. I was just glad I was able to copy this before handing it over to him. So what do you wish to do?"

Shikamaru studied the scroll in his hands briefly before closing his eyes and letting out a sigh. "We should do nothing," Shikamaru replied and handed the scroll over to Hinata, who gladly accepted and let out a shocked yet soft yelp.

"Even if this claim from the Raikage were to be true," Shikamaru tried to explain. "We don't have the necessary information to retrieve them, let alone keep them safe from Danzo and his Root agents. I hate to say this, but at the moment our hands are tight."

"But," Shizune tried to argue but was subdued by Hinata who softly spoke up.

"Shikamaru-kun is right. At the moment we cannot risk exposing ourselves. We are still inexperienced and forming this resistance movement is a lot more difficult than originally imagined. Shino-kun's Manticora hives aren't spreading as successfully as we had hoped and Danzo's agents have infiltrated areas we thought were safe. As much as this pains me to say, I am sorry Shizune-chan, but we cannot attempt a rescue from Kumogakure."

"Hinata is right," Shikamaru added quietly. "We all would like to hear Naruto's and Sakura's story behind Tsunade's sudden death. There are still so many questions that need answering first before we can take an active role in opposing Danzo."

"I-I am sorry," Shizune answered. "I understand."

"No, it's quite alright," Shikamaru replied. "We all would love to wake up and realize all of this was just some bad dream but it's not. So, on that note… Shino, what can you tell us about the problem you are experiencing in spreading the Hives?"

"It is quite a mystery," Shino started and pushed his dark glasses further up his nose. "It appears that there is another bug user within Konoha who is or already had been for some time spreading his own bug hives across the village."

"Could you elaborate on this a bit more?" Hinata asked politely. "What exactly is happening and how did you find out about this?"

"Most certainly," Shino answered. "My Manticora hives have been setting up their nests all over the village, yet once they reach a certain size; they are suddenly attacked by a foreign hive. This is certainly not uncommon, however for this to have happen multiple times in a row, makes this problematic because it is not natural."

"So you are saying the hives are being destroyed completely by this foreign hive?" Hinata asked for some clarification.

"Yes and no," Shino said and rolled up one of his arms to release an injured Manticora beetle. "This male is the only surviving beetle that I have and has returned to me to report the destruction of his hive. Aside from his hive, I have completely lost six other hives without a single surviving beetle. Upon investigating the areas, I have found the hives completely destroyed, however I am a little proud to say that they didn't go down without a fight, for the foreign hives that had attacked were also completely destroyed."

"So you are saying that there is a bug user in Konoha that could be from a different village, a spy perhaps?" Shikamaru asked in concern.

"It is a possibility," Shino replied. "However, upon investigating one of the enemy hives, I have stumbled upon an interesting clue. The foreign hive consisted of a rare species that the Aburame clan used during the Second Great Shinobi War. In my opinion, I believe that Danzo might have gotten his hands on an Aburame. That would also explain why the foreign hives attacked; they don't recognize my Manticora beetles as an Aburame breed."

"This is not good," Shikamaru said and looked somber. "We need to find a solution to this problem. Any ideas?"

"A few," Shino replied and let the injured beetles retreat back into his body. "I plan on using the genetic material of the survivor to breed more hardened Manticora. There is something within this genetic material that made him survive."

"Good," Shikamaru said pulled his hand through his hair. "Keep us informed Shino." Shikamaru stood up from where he sat and looked at his guests. "It is time for us to part. We'll meet again soon."

* * *

"Huh?" Sakura uttered in confusion as she found herself floating through a sea of gray. "Katsuyu-sama?" Sakura called out for the slug summon as a wall of dense fog drifted in from seemingly nowhere and surrounded her.

Sweat suddenly began to pour out of every pore in her body as her skin began to burn. Her joints were ceased with an immense muted pain and Sakura clenched her teeth as her breathing became labored. She curled into the fetal position as a white hot pain shot through her abdomen and she finally cried out in pain. She crunched her eyes shut in hopes of the powerful force that assaulted her belly would pass quickly but was disappointed when the fire in her lower region only increased. And another scream of hurt bellowed out of her mouth as her body began to shake as hot and cold fever chills plagued her.

"What's going on?" Sakura wept through clenched teeth as tears slowly spilled forth from her tightly shut eyes as the pain intensified.

"**Murderer,"** a ghostly voice suddenly breathed and Sakura's eyes flew open only to see nothing.

Thinking she had imagined the voice, Sakura tried to concentrate on the pain in her abdomen in hopes of quelling the intense hurt. Again she closed her eyes in an attempt to help her concentrate and block out the pain.

"**Traitor,"** another ghostly voice whispered again.

"Who's there?" Sakura yelled out again as her eyes flew open. She was certain that this time she hadn't imagined the voice and she scanned the dense fog around her for any signs of a person.

"**Murderer!"**

"**Traitor!"**

"**Failure!"**

"**Betrayer!"**

The voices multiplied and repeated the words continuously and steadily grew louder as the onslaught of the mysterious voices threatened to overwhelm her.

"Stop!" Sakura yelled out into the fog and openly cried as the pain in her abdomen intensified with each accusation. "Please…"

"**Demon!"**

"**Demon!"**

"**Demon whore!"**

"No!" Sakura angrily screamed at the voices as she twisted and thrashed in pain. And as the accusations grew in numbers and in force, her pain in her abdomen only grew in intensity and Sakura suddenly felt as if something, as if part of her was slipping away and was slowly dying.

"What's going on?" Sakura cried out as she clutched her abdomen.

"**You're dying,"** a female voice suddenly spoke. A voice, Sakura knew all too well and recognized immediately.

"I-Ino?" Sakura stammered in hurt and confusion as she blinked the tears out of her eyes and looked up at a rage filled apparition that belonged to her best friend.

"**Silence,"** Ino boomed and her once gentle eyes held a fire of anger and disgust that Sakura had never seen before in her friend. **"Traitors are not allowed to speak."**

"Ino it's me," Sakura tried but only received more accusations and a cold look from the apparition that looked like Ino that chilled Sakura down to her bones.

"Help me please. It hurts so much." Sakura pleaded with her friend and tried to reach out to Ino only to watch the apparition that was her friend, disappear into thin air with a sneer of disgust on her face. "Please stop this…"

"**Never,"** another voice answered, one Sakura recognized again and if the pain in her stomach hadn't been too much to take, the new pain in her heart was close to breaking her mental resolve.

"M-Mom?" Sakura asked weakly as an image of her mother appeared in front of Sakura. "W-what are you doing here?"

"**Watching a demon whore die,"** the image responded coldly **"And enjoying it."**

Sakura's eyes widened in shock and new tears ran down her face and Sakura wept. "I always knew that you hated Naruto but… but it's me, your daughter… How could you say this?"

"**Traitor!" **Ino yelled again as she reappeared.

"**Demon whore!"** Sakura's mother added accusingly.

"**Failure!"** Another apparition joined that took the shape of Sakura's father.

"**Demon!"** Several ghosts yelled as they materialized and all took on the shapes of people Sakura knew and cherished.

"**Murderer!"** One final specter thundered as it materialized and silenced everyone else.

"N-No," Sakura stammered and writhed in pain as her heart felt like it was breaking apart and the flow of life that was leaving her abdomen only increased. "N-not you too… be anyone but not you Naruto-kun."

"**Murderer!"** Naruto's image growled in anger again that shocked Sakura's entire body as if she had been struck by lightning.

"Stop this!" Sakura screamed in the hopes her nightmare would end. "You're not real… none of you are."

"**Murderer!" **The fake Naruto thundered again in anger.

"No," Sakura said and repeated the rejection numerous times as she held her head in denial and refused to look at the apparitions.

"_SILENCE!"_ Another voice boomed and every specter that had been accusing Sakura and assaulting her shrieked in panic and fear. _"LEAVE AT ONCE!"_

Sakura suddenly felt a warmness spread throughout her body as the pain slowly ebbed away. She opened her eyes only to see a young girl, not older than ten materialize in front of her. The girl had dark auburn hair and deep black eyes and wore a simple white linen robe.

"Who are you?" Sakura asked.

"_Everything is going to be okay now,"_ the girl replied and smiled as she stood in front of Sakura with her hands clasped behind her back.

"Really?" Sakura asked not entirely convinced as she felt the prying dark eyes of the girl study her intensely.

The girl nodded and a frown suddenly formed on the girl's young face. The girl stepped closer and tilted her head in confusion, _"I sense two life forces within you… one is yours but the other, it is far too young and is quickly fading…"_

"What, what is it?" Sakura asked in confusion.

The girl's face suddenly took on a look of sadness, _"How irresponsible to take the rite of passage in such a condition…"_

"What?" Sakura blinked and looked at herself, wondering whether she could see what the girl was seeing.

A sad sigh escaped the young girl and Sakura's eyes stared at the auburn haired youngster.

"_A terrible, terrible mistake has been made,"_ the girl spoke sadly and looked at Sakura's fear filled eyes. _"Sakura, if you wish to live, you have to not only filter the poison within your body but you also need to do it for the child you carry within you."_

Sakura blinked in surprise and was momentarily speechless, "M-my child? I… I am pregnant?"

"_Regrettably so,"_ the girl answered and looked somber. _"If you don't filter the poison for your child, you will not only let the baby die but you will die as well. Either both of you will live or none of you will. Decide quickly for time is of the essence."_

"I… I," Sakura stammered and felt like pulling on her hair as her mind was yelling at her for even having to think about this. "What must I do?" Sakura finally asked in worry.

"_Concentrate,"_ the girl replied. _"And as you clean the poison from your own system and adapt it to suit your needs, you will have to do the same for your child. It is a task that has never been done before and I fear that you will not succeed but you must try, if you ever wish to see the father of your child again."_

"Okay," Sakura responded and felt the warmth that kept her pain away leave her body. She toppled over in pain again as her abdomen screamed with hurt and her heavy breathing only intensified as Sakura slowly tried to concentrate on the task at hand.

"Wait, where are you going?" Sakura called after the girl that was suddenly fading away. "Y-you never told me your name?"

The young girl smiled and said, _"I am you, I am your child, and I am everyone. I am who you needed me to be and my time has come to leave you my child. Good bye Sakura-san, I wish you the best of luck."_

"Bye," Sakura replied sadly at being alone again and momentarily was able to block out the pain she was experiencing when she finally realized, "Oh my god I am pregnant."

* * *

In the meantime, watching over Sakura's unconscious body sat Katsuyu-sama and meditated. The giant slug towered over her charge and hummed a soft tune as her the giant head slowly swayed back and forth in the soft breeze, when the wind suddenly picked up around the slug and began to whisper to the giant summon in a language unheard of to the human ears.

"As you wish Mother," Katsuyu answered to the musings of the wind. "I will do as you request."

And just as suddenly as the wind had picked up and died down again, Katsuyu's massive form suddenly split apart in hundreds of smaller versions of herself and some slithered away in haste, while the rest stayed behind and slowly surrounded Sakura's prone form and carefully lifted the unconscious pink haired girl unto their numerous backs and followed those miniature duplicates, who had hastened away mere moments before.

The small wave of slugs on which Sakura's unconscious form was riding finally entered a massive dark cavern. The slugs continued to carry her deep into the cave and after what seemed like hours, reached a massive intricate design of glowing seals and placed her sleeping form into the center of the seal array.

The hundreds of Katsuyu imitations quickly reformed themselves into the original massive size of the slug chieftain and the large slug slithered off to the side of the seal array and over towards another set of seals and slowly began channeling chakra.

"Gyaku Kuchiyose no Jutsu," Katsuyu whispered in her musical tone and a cloud of smoke appeared in front of the massive slug. Katsuyu waited patiently for the smoke to dissipate and slowly lowered her massive head as a weak outline was seen through the thinning mist.

"Tsunade-sama," Katsuyu hushed. "Tsunade-sama, it is I, are you alright?"

"K-Katsuyu?" Tsunade's croaked in question in a very weak, frail, and aged voice. "Is that really you?"

"Yes, Tsunade-sama," Katsuyu replied warmly and studied the weak form of her master. "What has happened to you? What is happening in Konoha?"

"Danzo," Tsunade replied weakly as she carefully shifted her body. "He took control of the village. He betrayed me, tricked me…" a shadow of fear and disbelief hung in Tsunade's eyes as she was trying to explain. "He, he controlled me. There was nothing I could do," Tsunade started crying in pain as she remembered having to helplessly watch as Naruto was defeated by Uchiha Sasuke, only to be saved by Sakura in the nick of time and again only to watch them flee, knowing they were going to be hunted down by Orochimaru and Sasuke or Danzo and his root ilk.

Distant memoires of seeing Danzo sneering into her face as she was thrown into a dark damp cell resurfaced and with those memories came more as she remembered hearing that Sakura and herself were declared dead with Naruto their murderer. Tsunade's brittle old fingers slowly tested the ground surrounding her aging body in a feeble attempt of figuring out where she was only to give up and continued her demented rambling.

"I wanted to help them Katsuyu but I couldn't. His eyes, they questioned me, begged me for help and I saw the confusion in them and the hurt as he realized I wasn't helping. I saw the betrayal he felt, the pain, and the spark of hope and fear as Sakura appeared. I… I saw his love for her and the blaze of fire in his eyes as he realized she had come for him and not for the Uchiha… and yet every time I close my eyes, his blue eyes stare at me and ask me why I wasn't helping him. I… I just couldn't…"

Katsuyu carefully watched her master and assessed her condition, only to realize that perhaps she had acted too late and had waited far too long in order to contact her master. Katsuyu immediately recognized the extreme case of malnutrition Tsunade suffered from and the dementia Tsunade displayed was only strengthened by the fact that the once proud woman was only a former ghost of her previous life. This was easily seen by the fact that the legendary Genjutsu Tsunade kept on herself was no longer in effect.

"Tsunade-sama," Katsuyu softly spoke again and hoped to rip her master out of her dementia. "I need you Tsunade-sama. Sakura-san and Naruto-san, they need you. They are alive and well but they still need you. Sakura-san needs you right now."

"Sakura? Naruto?" Tsunade repeated the name in confusion and for the first time since being summoned, looked up at the giant slug. "W-Who are they?"

Tsunade looked on in confusion but her expression suddenly turned from bewilderment to recognition, "S-Sakura? Yes, I… I think I know that name."

"Yes," Katsuyu replied hastily. "Remember her pink hair, her jaded eyes, and her thickheaded attitude just like yourself… You loved her as you would a daughter and you were her mentor and teacher. She has undergone the ritual of the journey without knowing that she was with child and now she is in terrible danger of losing her own life and that of her child as well. Sakura needs you Tsunade-sama. Your apprentice needs you."

Tsunade's head suddenly tilted sideways and her aged face turned angry, "Where is grandfather? He promised to tell me a good night story?"

Katsuyu flinched in shock and confusion as Tsunade seemed to be suddenly reliving a childhood moment. "Tsunade-sama," Katsuyu tried again. "Please concentrate. Sakura-san, she needs you."

"Right," Tsunade replied and nodded in determination. "And who are you?"

Katsuyu blinked in confusion and inhaled sharply in irritation. "Tsunade-sama please, Sakura-san will die if you don't snap out of it."

Suddenly a dawn of recognition crossed Tsunade's hazy eyes, "Sakura? Where is she? What does she have? Damn it Katsuyu answer me already!"

"Sakura-san is right over there," Katsuyu answered and breathed a sigh of relief. "She underwent the journey but unbeknownst to me and apparently herself, she is with child and…"

"S-Sakura is pregnant?" Tsunade exclaimed in shock and surprise and tried to stand on two shaky legs. "I-I need a cane, something to help me walk. In the meantime, help me and get me to Sakura."

Katsuyu quickly helped her old master and within minutes, Tsunade found herself half kneeling, half sitting next to Sakura's prone form. Her honey brown eyes watered as she looked at her apprentice's serene face and she turned to look at her summon. "W-who is the father?"

"I believe it is Naruto-san," Katsuyu replied. "The two of them have been on the run for months now. They were summoned here by the toads and Naruto-san is currently undergoing Sage training, while Sakura-san wanted to join in your footsteps."

"I see," Tsunade answered and looked through teary eyes at her apprentice that had all of a sudden become a full blown woman in Tsunade's mind. "They grow up so quickly…"

"Tsunade-sama," Katsuyu interrupted hoping her master had not relapsed into dementia. "Sakura-san is in danger, the poison needs to be changed by her. I have faith in her abilities but I fear she won't realize that she also needs to change the poison for her child as well."

"I understand," Tsunade said and slowly stretched her hands out over Sakura's body and Tsunade closed her eyes as she took a deep breath and summoned chakra to her hands. "Watch over us Katsuyu."

"Hai!" The slug responded and knew that Tsunade had entered Sakura's dream state in order to help the young pinkette.

* * *

"Ouch," Sakura hissed and clenched her teeth as another wave of pain rolled through her. _"Okay the girl said I have to concentrate in order to nullify Katsuyu-sama's poison," _Sakura spoke in her mind as she closed her eyes in concentration and tried to visualize a crude image of herself.

Minutes passed quickly and Sakura still had her eyes closed as her hands slowly moved away from her abdomen and up to her chest. A small sad smile crossed her lips as the imaginary image of herself was showing in front of her mind's eye. Sakura saw her blue chakra pathways and as she concentrated upon the lower region of her image, a small compact ball of blue chakra could be seen as it was fed by her own chakra system and Sakura instinctively knew that she was looking at her unborn child.

However, as Sakura witnessed the slow steady pulsing of her chakra and that off her unborn child, she suddenly realized that the flow of chakra towards her child was slowly decreasing and losing color. Panic overcame her as she witnessed the blue ball that represented her child pulse violently in response as Sakura's chakra pathways were slowly dying and turning black as they no longer fed her chakra to the baby.

Tears screamed down her closed eyes as she witnessed the slow wilting of her chakra pathways that led towards her child and her heart shattered as the small ball of energy that was her baby tried to reach out to her in the form of creating its own tiny chakra tendrils in order to reconnect with Sakura's chakra system.

Wanting to scream in frustration, Sakura mentally reached for the outstretched hand of her baby. In desperation, Sakura willed the one chakra pathway that was closest to her baby and had not yet been affected by the poison that was killing her chakra pathways to branch out and reach for her child and with the help of her mind's eye, Sakura witnessed how an angry wave of blue chakra raced towards that one chakra tendril that was still unaffected and in a violent but warm explosion, a very thin tendril began to sprout and reach out to the tiny tendrils coming from the blue sphere that could be considered her baby's hand in a show of reaching out to the mother's help.

After what felt like hours of repeated failure in trying to connect her small tendril with that of her baby, Sakura was nearing the end of her resolve. It was then that she heard the whispers of a voice she had thought lost forever. "You can do it Sakura. You are not alone anymore."

"Shishou?" Sakura whispered in surprise as she felt herself being embraced in warmth as Sakura witnessed foreign chakra that was the colors of forest green enter her system.

This green chakra burst into her and raced towards the dying and dead chakra pathways that Sakura had lost to the poison and she was surprised to see the small blue ball that was her unborn child surrounded by a sea of green. Anger welled up in Sakura as she realized that the poison had already destroyed the majority of her chakra pathways that were feeding the baby and Sakura felt her own chakra suddenly respond violently in outrage. A well of power was suddenly unleashed within her that created waves upon waves of blue chakra as it raced towards the areas that were currently occupied by Tsunade's green chakra.

And as the two chakra sources met, Tsunade's green chakra moved aside while Sakura's blue took control again and within moments, Sakura's entire body was once again filled with her own blue chakra as the green had seceded. A smile adorned Sakura's face as she mentally took a step back to look at her image and where once had been a small blue sphere that was fed by a few strands of her chakra, an entire blue ocean remained that was pulsating in harmony with her beating heart and in the center of this ocean, Sakura felt her child strong and alive.

"Sakura," Tsunade's voice spoke up in the pinkette's mind. "Open your eyes Sakura."

She quickly did as she was told by Tsunade and to her surprise, Sakura's eyes fell upon the floating form of her teacher. A smile split Sakura's face in half, "You look old Shishou."

Tsunade frowned and settled for a sigh, "It is good to see you too Sakura."

"Yes it is," Sakura replied with tears running down her face as she willed her floating body to hover into Tsunade's arms.

The two embraced each other and Tsunade whispered, "I have missed you so much Sakura. I was afraid that you had died, I was afraid that Danzo and his Root would find you and kill you in order to keep you quiet."

"He tried," Sakura replied and pulled back from the hug. "However, you taught me well. But what are you doing here and more importantly, how did you find me?"

"Katsuyu summoned me," Tsunade answered. "So you are taking the rights of passage?"

"Yes," Sakura responded and blushed. "I need to get stronger in order to help Naruto-kun. And since he is training with the toads, I thought that I should continue with my medic training. I remembered how you told me that you had learned a lot from the slugs during your travels away from Konoha and I wanted to follow in your footsteps. But now, I… I screwed up."

"You didn't," Tsunade answered. "You are irresponsible though not to tell Katsuyu that you were pregnant."

"But I didn't know," Sakura interjected.

"Regardless," Tsunade said and placed a reassuring arm on Sakura's shoulder. "You are at a point in your life where you need to go above and beyond what is considered possible. You have to clean the poison out of your system and do the same for your child at the same time."

"Okay," Sakura muttered sadly. "But I don't know how. I don't know how to clean the poison, let alone adapt it to suit my own body. How can you expect me to do the same for my child?"

Tsunade smiled, "I know Sakura but that is why I am here. I will guide you through the process and help you as much as I can."

"Thank you Shishou," Sakura said and wiped tears out of her eyes. "How do I start?"

"Sakura what did you see when I helped you restore the chakra connection to your baby?" Tsunade asked. "What was different?"

Sakura thought quickly, "I am not sure but the color of your chakra was different. It was green and not the usual blue color all chakra possesses."

"Correct," Tsunade replied and smiled. "Do you know why that is?"

Sakura shook her head, "No I don't. The only other person that I know that has a different chakra color is Naruto-kun, but only when he calls upon the Kyuubi's powers."

"The reason why my chakra color is different is because I was able to change Katsuyu's poison and change it to suit my own needs," Tsunade explained. "You need to understand that the poison isn't really a poison but instead is the natural energy that the slugs use. In a way, you could consider it their life force."

"So Katsuyu-sama gave me some of her life force?" Sakura asked in confusion. "But wouldn't that kill her eventually?"

Tsunade chuckled, "No it won't. In fact, for us humans, her life force is closer to receiving a very strong boost of foreign chakra. And that boost is what is killing you and your child. Katsuyu's chakra is literally burning your chakra pathways. You have to contain Katsuyu's powers within you and slowly have your chakra system assimilate the chakra. And if you succeed, your chakra will no longer be blue like everyone else, but green as well and once you reach that, you are able to sync with Katsuyu and perform the most powerful medic ninjutsu that would normally kill a person from chakra exhaustion."

"I see," Sakura responded in thought. "So how do I start?"

"Close your eyes," Tsunade responded. "And I will guide you through the process. But remember to help your baby, it is incapable of doing this alone. You need to do it for the child."

"Okay I understand," Sakura replied and closed her eyes and listened carefully to Tsunade's guidance as she concentrated on the task at hand.

* * *

A sharp intake of breath announced Sakura waking up from her poison induced slumber and her jade green eyes flew open wide. Sakura lay quietly on her back as her eyes adjusted to the dimly lit cave. Sitting up, she groaned lightly in pain as her stiff joints protested against the sudden movement.

"Tsunade-sama," she called out softly as she was trying to look for her mentor. While in her dream state, Tsunade had explained everything to Sakura. Explained how Danzo was able to control her, explained why Tsunade was unable to come to Naruto's rescue when Orochimaru had attacked, and explained to Sakura how Danzo had declared Sakura and herself dead at the hands of Naruto. Tsunade had told Sakura how the Hokage was thrown into a Root prison cell to be locked away for eternity, only to survive on the moss that was growing within her cell.

"Shishou?" Sakura called out again after not receiving an answer and as she sat upright and looked around, her heart stopped as her eyes fell upon the unconscious form that was Tsunade a few feet away from her.

"Tsunade-sama!" Sakura screamed and crawled as quickly as possible towards her mentor. When she reached the old woman, Sakura quickly checked Tsunade's vital signs and let out a sigh of relief when she found a weak but steady heartbeat.

Tsunade's eyes opened slowly as Sakura turned the woman onto her back and cradled Tsunade's head on top of her legs. "W-who are you?" Tsunade asked weakly.

Sakura blinked in confusion as she was caught off guard. "U-um Shishou it's me Sakura."

"Sakura?" Tsunade's weak voice repeated her name as if she was trying to find out whether that name would ring any bells. "I am sorry Sakura but I don't know you? Where is grandpa? Why hasn't he come back yet from the office to read a bedtime story to me?"

"W-what? I don't understand Tsunade-sama," Sakura said in irritation.

"It appears that Tsunade-sama has suffered greatly under captivity. Perhaps her age has finally caught up to her as well. It appears she is unable to cast her famed Genjutsu on herself," Katsuyu's melodic voice drifted into the cave. "I believe exhaustion is a factor behind Tsunade-sama turning senile but I am not sure."

"Ah it's that talking snail again," Tsunade said in amusement. "What was your name again? Sushi-sama?"

Briefly looking down at Tsunade, Sakura looked at the giant slug entering the cave and asked in confusion, "Are you saying that Tsunade-sama has become senile?"

"It appears so," Katsuyu replied. "I am glad that she was able to come to her senses in time to help you through your rights of passage and I had hoped that the senility would only be temporary, but that appears to not be the case Sakura-sama."

"Sakura-sama? Why the sudden raise in honorific Katsuyu-sama?" Sakura asked and studied Tsunade's honey brown eyes that held plenty of confusion.

"Because you have passed the rights of passage," Katsuyu responded and slithered deeper into the cave.

"Sakura?" Tsunade suddenly asked weakly before smiling. "Thank goodness it worked. You and your baby are safe now."

"Eh?" Sakura mumbled as she saw some form of clarity reappear in Tsunade's eyes. "Tsunade-sama do you recognize me?"

Tsunade frowned and slowly said up, "Of course I recognize you Sakura. Why shouldn't I?"

"Oh," Sakura mouthed and scratched her head in embarrassment, a movement she had slowly adopted from Naruto. "You didn't recognize me at all just a few minutes ago."

"Nonsense," Tsunade grumbled. "Rather help an old woman back on her feet. I won't get any younger by lying around on a damp and cold cave floor."

A chuckle escaped Sakura and she quickly helped Tsunade to her feet and the two walked out of the cave system and into the warming sun with Katsuyu following quickly.

"What now?" Sakura asked Tsunade as the two enjoyed the warm climate.

"It is time for you to start your real medic training," Tsunade said with a smile on her old face. "And I think we have reached the time where I will teach you the last of my techniques that will unlock the last power boost that you are still missing. With that, a simple flick of your finger will send Naruto flying, but we have to hurry. We can't subjugate you to too much training once you enter your last trimester. But we have 6 months until that happens, therefore, prepare yourself for the worst training of your life. We'll start tomorrow."

"Right," Sakura agreed and smiled at her teacher. "I can't believe I am pregnant," Sakura finally said once more and felt Tsunade's arm around her shoulder.

"Everything will be fine," Tsunade answered in reassurance. "I am here now, and I don't plan on ever leaving you or Naruto agin. I just hope that idiot knows what he is doing."

"He'll be fine," Sakura responded as her hands drifted over her womb as she tried to sense her young baby. "Naruto will return stronger than ever."

"That he will," Tsunade said and turned to walk away. "C'mon let us go for a walk."

And as the two women walked arm in arm through the giant mushroom jungle that was the home of the slugs, Katsuyu watched from the distance, praying for the safety of her charges and for Naruto. The slug chieftain knew that an interesting time lay ahead of her in more than one way. Training Sakura in becoming the newest slug princess and watching the birth of a human child were only some of the interesting moments awaiting the slug clan but the largest worry lie with Tsunade as Katsuyu's eyes settled upon Tsunade's back and somehow the slug knew that Tsunade's case of senility would resurface again.

* * *

**A/N:** Well finally an update for you to enjoy. Next chapter will be a time skip of about 1-2 years and will cover Naruto's return to Sakura and Tsunade.

I was going to show more of Sakura's training but I seriously had no solid ideas for making it interesting, so I went with this weird dream sequence. Some of you might have recognized similarities with "The Dune Saga" and I assure you… that's where I got the idea from.

Carry on! **Bloodlines** update coming soon. **Kingkakashi** and I are working on it as quickly as we can.


	11. Time skips

**A/N:** I present to you the next installment. Enjoy it. Love it. Hate it.

* * *

**Fūrinkazan**

Chapter - 10

"Time skips and their troublesome side effects"

"_I can't believe I took two years to train with the toads,"_ Naruto berated himself as he rushed through the humid mushroom jungle that was the slugs' domain. _"Sakura-chan will never forgive me for taking a complete year longer than intended…"_

"What the hell," Naruto suddenly yelled as the mushroom he was standing on collapsed under his weight. His world turned up-side down as he was falling head first towards the jungle floor.

"_What the hell is that?"_ Naruto thought as he saw what he believed to be the jungle floor rapidly approaching. And as he neared and readied himself to twist in the air so he would land on his feet, the jungle suddenly sprang to life. Giant raptors appeared from the underbrush below Naruto, hissing in anticipation of an arriving meal.

"Sorry but I am not going to be your lunch," Naruto replied with a smirk and summoned several shadow clones. With grace, he used the clones as spring boards and his decent stopped as he shot into the sky.

Aiming for another mushroom, Naruto twisted in the air and was about to land when a giant bird scooped down from the sky and plucked him out of the air.

"You got to be kidding me," Naruto yelled in frustration as the bird's claws dug into him. He winced as he felt his shirt stain with his blood. He turned his head and tried to look up at the massive claw in order to try and see what kind of bird had snatched him up.

"I am sorry but if anyone is going to hurt me for being an idiot," Naruto said as he summoned a Rasengan. "It'll be Sakura-chan."

The giant bird squawked in protest at the sudden pain that shot up its claw and released Naruto immediately. Naruto felt the air rush passed his ears and he twisted again in order to prepare his landing. He quickly found a clearing within the massive jungle that seemed safe to land in and with the help of his clones adjusted his descent accordingly.

With a heavy impact, Naruto fell to the ground and was surprised to sink up to his knees into the soft orange colored ground.

"Huh?" Naruto muttered in surprise as he looked down at his feet and frowned. He tried to pull his legs up but was confused when he couldn't lift his feet. "What now?"

And as luck was on his side, the orange ground suddenly trembled and split into four massive panes that quickly rose to the sky. Bug eyed, Naruto helplessly watched as the four panes closed up above him and drenching him in darkness.

"Um… okay I give up," Naruto said and shook his head in the darkness. Closing his eyes, Naruto began to concentrate his Sage chakra in order to figure out where he was.

The sound of water rushing into the darkness forced Naruto to open his eyes again. His legs were suddenly drenched in an unidentifiable liquid. Frowning, Naruto summoned a Rasengan and used it as a light source.

"Hn," Naruto mused and watched the liquid continuously rise. By now he was already submerged to his hips and the level was rising even faster.

"_Time to leave,"_ Naruto thought and tried to get his legs free again. Struggling, Naruto was finally able to free his legs and he quickly moved towards one of the walls and slammed his Rasengan into the wall.

He felt his hand push through the fleshy wall and a large sucking groan emanated through the darkness. And just as quickly as the walls had closed on him, Naruto found himself standing back in the natural light, covered from head to toe in the fleshy gooey substance that was the giant flesh eating plant.

"Yuck," Naruto muttered and wiped his hand over his face to remove the goo. "I am going to need a bath and more," he added as he waded away.

Eventually jumping back up the giant mushrooms that counted as the trees in this jungle, Naruto resumed his return to Sakura. Closing his eyes, he let the natural energies of the jungle guide him in the proper directions. He could sense her in the far distance. It was a bright warm beacon that stood out from the surrounding jungle and his legs raced towards them as fast as they could.

Hoping he would arrive without further more delay, Naruto concentrated on every step he was doing. And hours later, he finally slowed and stopped all together underneath a mushroom and slowly pushed the giant drooping dome of the shroom up in order to see what was awaiting him.

His eyes widened and warmed as he saw a crystal clear small lake in front of him. The sound of a small waterfall feeding into the lake drew his eyes and he swallowed hard as he saw the woman of his desires swimming near the waterfall. He saw Sakura's grown out pink hair cascade down her naked body as she slowly rose from the water.

Mesmerized, Naruto's breathing intensified as he watched Sakura leave the lake and walk towards the shade of a mushroom. He saw her kneel and fuzz about something as she was occupied with something small in front of her. What it was Naruto couldn't tell but he pushed the dome of mushroom higher in order to step out from the shade and a happy smile adorned his face.

His smile froze on his face as he saw Sakura turn around with a bright smile of her own and holding a small child in her arms cooing at it lovingly. Frozen in shock, Naruto watched Sakura glide back into the lake with the baby in her arms. Swallowing, Naruto slowly edged forward.

"Who is Mommy's little angel?" Sakura cooed lovingly with the baby as she drifted through the water with the child in her arms.

The baby responded by blowing bubbles.

"Yes you are," Sakura said lovingly as she placed a kiss on the forehead of the small child.

"What is it?" Sakura asked her child as she listened to the child babble. "Oh you're asking where your father is?"

Naruto heard all this and his legs suddenly stopped dead as Sakura unknowingly translated for him. His breath was caught in his throat as he stood several feet behind Sakura and her child. A strained pause overcame him as he waited for Sakura to respond and when she did, tears welled up in his eyes.

"Your father is far away training to become stronger," Sakura said with happiness and a hint of yearning. "He is doing that in order to protect not only himself but us as well. Your father has a dream; he wants to become the Hokage and to do so, he needs to be the strongest shinobi in our village."

"Baba…" the child bubbled and the small meaty hands reached out over Sakura's shoulder and laughed.

"Oh has Baa-chan come to let us know that dinner is ready?" Sakura asked the child in amusement.

Sakura turned around to say hello to Tsunade but froze when instead of the aged Hokage, someone else stood behind here.

"BABA!" the baby shouted again and struggled to get out of Sakura's arms.

"N-Naruto?" Sakura whispered his name as tears swelled in her eyes. "Is that really you?"

"Sakura-chan," Naruto breathed her name and immediately ran forward and without hesitation walked into the water and threw his arm around her and the baby.

"I am sorry," Naruto apologized. "I meant to come sooner but… but…"

"Shhh," Sakura shushed him and placed a finger on his lips as she smiled at him. "I am just glad that you're finally back."

"Sakura-chan," Naruto said and choked back tears.

"BABA!"

Naruto stepped back and looked at the small child in Sakura's arms. The baby's arms were outstretched as it tried to grab hold of Naruto. Unsure, Naruto's eyes wondered from the child to Sakura and hesitantly he stuttered, "Is… is that our child?"

"Yes," Sakura replied with a smile as tears of joy brimmed at the corners of her eyes. "This is your daughter."

Stunned, Naruto blinked and looked back at his daughter in Sakura's arms. He hesitantly reached out with his right hand and the small child immediately wrapped her tiny fingers around his fingers. A broad smile crossed Naruto's face, "She's so beautiful. W-what's her name? How old is she?"

"She's a year and half and I named her Ino," Sakura offered and watched Naruto's expression carefully to see if he showed any signs of not liking the name. "That is if you are fine with it."

"Ino-chan," Naruto repeated the name and his eyes lit up with laughter as he watched the baby blow more bubbles. "I love it. Can I hold her?"

"Of course," Sakura answered quickly and was a bit taken back. "Why shouldn't you be allowed?"

"Well I am quite clumsy," Naruto said with a chuckle. "I never held a baby before…"

"Nonsense," Sakura said and walked next to Naruto and gently placed the child into his arms. "Here, this is how you should hold her."

"This is… this is amazing," Naruto finally uttered in awe as he held his daughter for the first time. "Thank you Sakura-chan. Thank you for everything."

Sakura blinked in surprise at receiving praise and frowned, "Why are you thanking me Naruto-kun?"

"For this," Naruto said and motioned to the baby girl in his arms, "And for everything that you have done for me in the past, present, and hopefully future."

"Naruto you're a silly idiot," Sakura chuckled and snaked one arm around him as she looked at their daughter as she lay in his arms.

"She's so beautiful," Naruto whispered as he stared at the girl. "She's as beautiful as her mother," he added and sniffled as he was overjoyed.

"She has her father's eyes though," Sakura replied. Her voice was filled with emotions and she wiped away some of her own tears. "And she has her father's unrelenting restlessness. I swear she has more energy than you do Naruto."

"Heh," Naruto uttered. "I recall that you had a certain amount of non-stoppable energy as well."

"I did not," Sakura retorted.

"Oh you do," Naruto replied with a chuckle. "You mainly used it in order to impress a certain someone from Konoha back when we were younger."

"Oh," Sakura muttered dejectedly. "That…"

"Yes," Naruto said in amusement. "And I recall that you had excessive energy during one of our many nights together."

"Naruto," Sakura growled his name in danger as he referred to the night of their little girl's creation. "You're crossing dangerous waters right now."

"I know," Naruto said and leaned over to give the pink-haired woman a short yet passionate kiss. "You look wonderful Sakura-chan."

A hint of pink flushed her normally white cheeks, "Thank you. You don't look too shabby yourself."

"I know," Naruto blurted without hesitation that earned him a small smack against his head.

"No need to be conceited," Sakura smiled. "I missed you."

"I did too," Naruto said. "I missed you so much that I was hurting for each day that I spent apart from you."

"Really?" Sakura asked as her eyes narrowed and her voice turned dangerous. "Then why have you taken one extra damn year to come back to me?"

Naruto suddenly blinked rapidly in confusion at Sakura's sudden change in mood and failed to realize that Sakura had gently taken the baby girl out of his arms.

"W-what?"

"Two years," Sakura growled with tears running down her face. A dark shadow was cast over her face, "I waited for two years and you didn't even bother sending a single message asking how I was doing or informing me that you would take longer to come back. Nothing… not a single word!"

And with those words, Naruto suddenly found himself flying across the lake as Sakura's fist impacted with his face.

"_Heh,"_ Naruto thought as he crashed, his body bouncing like a rag doll and finally coming to a stop under a giant mushroom. _"She hasn't changed at all - one of the reasons why I love her so much."_

Sakura was fuming in anger but it was quickly replaced by a smile as she heard Naruto groan in the distance. The baby girl in Sakura's arms started giggling and excitedly clapped its tiny pudgy hands and reached out into the direction of where Naruto had flown.

"BABA!" Little Ino shouted in amusement and squirmed in Sakura's arms.

"Yes," Sakura said and waded out of the water. She quickly wrapped the baby in a towel, while she herself got dressed in the robe she had discarded earlier before she went for a swim. "Let's go pick up your idiotic father and take him home to see Baa-chan."

"BABA!"

**XXXXX**

Naruto lay crumbled underneath a giant mushroom stalk and held his head as he groaned from the ringing pain. He rolled his stiff shoulder and with a loud hiss and a pop, his bones realigned and the dislocation was rectified.

"_Wow that was quite a punch,"_ Naruto thought in irritated pain. _"Sakura-chan has grown far stronger than I imagined."_

"I am sorry," Sakura said softly in remorse as Naruto felt a delicate hand come to rest on his forehead. A rush of cool chakra surged into his mind and methodically disassembled Naruto's ringing headache.

"Thanks," Naruto grunted and their eyes met. A smile cracked his lips and a hint of mischievousness flickered in his eyes, as his right hand stealthily moved up and slowly groped Sakura's bum.

"I forgive you Sakura-chan."

"P-pervert!" Sakura screamed as her healing hand left Naruto's forehead.

However, before Sakura's fist was able to impact with Naruto's smirking face, his face shot forward and snatched her lips with his own, draining her of her anger. Their kiss ended as quickly as it had started as the baby girl squirmed in Sakura's other arm excitedly.

"Y-you," Sakura huffed in deflated anger as she looked into Naruto's beaming face. "I… I should break your hand for doing that," Sakura puffed between labored breathing.

"Hey you deserved it as much as I deserved being punted across the lake," Naruto joked and pulled her onto his lap after settling himself in a more comfortable position. His arms snaked around her waist and he lovingly looked into her eyes. "I really missed you Sakura-chan."

"DADA!" Young Ino bubbled and broke the spell of silence between her parents. Her pudgy hands reached up to Naruto and Sakura and both their faces turned to look at their baby girl as she rested in Sakura's arms.

"I missed you too," Naruto soothed as he smiled and placed a soft kiss on the baby's forehead and was rewarded with a giggle from the baby.

"Naruto let's go," Sakura spoke and stood up. "It's getting late and Ino-chan needs to get her sleep."

"Right," Naruto quickly replied and hastily brushed the dirt of his clothes as he stood next to Sakura. "So where are we going?"

"There is a cave system nearby," Sakura began as she shifted the baby into her left arm and took one of Naruto's into her right. "It's quite beautiful," she explained as she was slowly leading Naruto towards it. "The caves are covered with ancient cave drawings and Katsuyu-sama claims that one of the very first humans had originally come from here."

"Sounds exciting," Naruto said and studied the jungle surrounding them. "But aren't you afraid of the predators that are living here? I ran into a few of them and I have to say they appear quite fearsome and dangerous."

"They are," Sakura admitted. "But the slugs keep it relatively safe."

"Hn," Naruto grunted in understanding and he lovingly squeezed Sakura's hand that was interlocked with his.

Touched at his show of affection and worry, Sakura mentally sighed _"Why am I not surprised at his subconscious urge to protect me?"_

A smile spread across her face as she watched Naruto scan the jungle for any threats. _"I wonder how he will react when he meets Shishou again,"_ Sakura thought and inched closer to Naruto.

"I got you," Naruto said reassuringly and let go of Sakura's hand before snaking the arm around her waist and pulling her into his side. "I'm never going to leave you again Sakura-chan."

**XXXXXX**

"Whoah!" Naruto muttered as they stood in front of the complex cave system. "T-this is amazing…"

Sakura chuckled and left Naruto's protective embrace and walked towards one of the cave entrances. She stopped at the entrance and waited for him to catch up. "Naruto-kun! Are you coming?"

"Yes," Naruto quickly replied and bounded towards her. "Sorry, I was a bit overwhelmed by the sheer size of this mountain range. I had no idea something this large was hidden in this jungle."

"I know what you mean," Sakura said and entered the cave they were standing in front of. "I was quite shocked myself when I found this place with…"

"Sakura? Sakura is that you?" An aged voice suddenly echoed through the cave. "Who are you talking to? Is everything alright? How is little Ino-chan doing?"

Naruto abruptly stopped walking as his eyes widened in surprise at hearing the voice. His head snapped towards Sakura and saw her smiling reassuringly. He received a small nod from the pinkette next to him and his throat suddenly dried up.

He licked his lips nervously and looked towards the bend in the cave he stood in front and saw a cone of light slowly coming towards them. A rhythmic tock, as if wood hit naked stone, slowly grew louder with the approaching light and Naruto found himself transfixed upon the bend.

"Sakura what's wrong?" The worried voice asked again and the light was nearly around the bend.

"Sakura…" the voice stopped as the person inched around the corner.

"B-Baa-chan," Naruto stammered in a whisper as he saw Tsunade halt in her step. The busty blonde stood frozen in shock and her mouth was pressed into a thin line as tears edged at the corner of the aging Hokage's face. Gone was the youthful Genjutsu the strong woman always wore and in its place was an ancient, wrinkled face that had been written on by many hardships and too much remorse.

"Naruto," Tsunade whispered in disbelief as her right hand held a torch, while her left firmly grasped atop a gnarled stick that worked as a cane.

"Baa-chan," Naruto said again and the spell was lifted as he rushed forward and enveloped the old woman in a bone crushing hug.

"I missed you so much," Tsunade wept as her frail arms wrapped around Naruto.

"How did you get here?" Naruto asked eventually. "What happened to you?"

"Naruto," Sakura interjected and placed a soft hand on his shoulder as the pinkette saw a shift in Tsunade's eyes.

"I am sorry but who are you?" Tsunade suddenly asked as she looked at Naruto and then at Sakura. "Has granddaddy sent you to get me?"

Naruto blinked in confusion, "What? Baa-chan it's me Naruto."

"Naruto," Sakura repeated his name again and softly shook her head.

"If granddaddy didn't send you," Tsunade continued pompously as she had reverted back into her mental state of a child. "I will not go with you. I am not supposed to go with strangers."

"Sakura-chan," Naruto asked and turned towards his wife. "What's happening?"

Sakura smiled painfully and handed their child to Naruto as she tried to explain what she had found out over the past two years. "She has suffered greatly from Danzo's imprisonment. Her chakra is erratic and when she is experiencing a lot of stress, she forgets people. She is degrading," Sakura said as she saw a look of confusion on Naruto's face. "She doesn't remember us and thinks she is still a child. I don't understand why, but she always mentions her grandfather the Shodai Hokage."

"Okay," Naruto muttered as he looked at Tsunade in worry. Sakura then left Naruto's side and approached Tsunade. Placing a hand on top of Tsunade's that was holding on to the cane, Sakura gently turned Tsunade and walked with her deeper into the cave as Sakura gently spoke to the demented Hokage.

"Baba hurt," young Ino muttered with tears in her eyes.

Naruto hefted his baby girl high above him and smiled, "Don't worry Ino-chan. Mommy and Daddy will make sure that Baba becomes healthy again."

**XXXXX**

It was late during the night when Naruto lay on his back under a warm raptor-hide blanket. Sakura's head was resting next to his shoulder as one of her arms rested on his chest as she lay on her side. Deep in thought, he was staring up into the black cave ceiling and listened to the soft cracking of the small fire that was slowly dying out.

"Naruto-kun what's troubling you?" Sakura asked as she lifted her head to look into his eyes.

"Hey, sorry I didn't want to wake you," Naruto mumbled quietly. "It's nothing really Sakura-chan. I've just been thinking…"

"Tell me," Sakura insisted after she had waited briefly for Naruto to finish.

"It's nothing," Naruto said again and leaned over and kissed her gently. "Go back to sleep."

"Naruto," Sakura growled. "Tell me what's keeping you awake this instant or else…"

"You're not going to go to sleep until I tell you, will you?" He asked and received a look from her that spoke volumes. He chuckled lightly and sighed.

"I was just thinking about our next steps. I was secretly hoping you and I could just go to Konoha and defeat Danzo," Naruto started. "However, now I don't know anymore. I want to go to Konoha and clear our names but with our child and Baa-chan, I don't think we can afford it anymore."

"Don't you want to go to Iwa anymore?" Sakura asked curiously.

"Truthfully, I never believed that we could or should be hiding from Konoha; but now the priorities have changed. There is Ino-chan, Tsunade, and you that I need to protect. I want to offer you a peaceful and quiet life but I am afraid that if we settle down somewhere, that we'll grow weak and forget about our responsibilities towards Konoha."

Sakura propped her head up with her arm as she looked at Naruto intently. "Do you really think that we would grow weak and forget our friends and family back home? That we would grow complacent and live happily and quietly our lives, hidden away in secret? Do you really think that I want that?"

"No," Naruto answered as he looked into her face. "But I am still thinking about these possibilities. Let's say we hide in Earth Country, near Iwagakure, what are we going to do if Iwa finds us and realizes that we are shinobi? We can't fight an entire nation Sakura-chan…"

"Then we run," Sakura said but it was clear in her voice that she wasn't convinced herself. "But Naruto don't you want our little Ino-chan to grow up with children her own age?"

"Of course," Naruto quickly said. "I am just scared that I can't protect you."

"Naruto, sweetie," Sakura whispered as she leaned closer and hovered briefly above his lips. "You're not alone Naruto-kun. I will always be with you. I love you and we got married. We will protect our daughter and Tsunade-sama together. We are going to be one big happy family and when Ino-chan is older, I promise you, I promise that we will go to Konoha, clear our names, and reunite with our friends and family. And if Konoha is still unable to accept us, we'll leave Konoha and settle somewhere else. Sunagakure would be ideal. You would have Gaara to hang out with and our friends in Konoha aren't that far away."

A small smile crept upon Naruto's face and he erased the distance between their lips and pulled her on top of him as they kissed. "I knew I could count on you my cherry blossom."

**XXXXXX**

_13 weeks later_

"Here we are," Naruto said happily as he walked into a small town deep inside Earth Country. Young Ino was currently sitting on top of his shoulders and studied the surroundings with wide open eyes. "What do you think Ino-chan? Do you like it here?"

"No," Ino said abruptly and shook her head as she fisted her father's hair.

"You don't?" Naruto asked in surprise and turned around to see Sakura walking alongside Tsunade, making sure the old woman wouldn't trip. "But why? Mommy and Baa-chan like it here, right?"

"Yes we do," Sakura answered with a smile. Her hair had grown down towards half her back and was tied together by a small white ribbon at the end of her mane in order to hold it in place. Gone was the pink color and instead, Sakura had dyed it Kyuubi red. The unique color was a side effect from mixing her natural pink with the usual red hair dye.

"Hn," Tsunade grunted and stopped as she heavily leaned onto her cane. "Why here? This is too close to Iwagakure. We shouldn't be here, you shouldn't be here Naruto."

"Baa-chan hates it here too," Ino shouted and pouted.

"Tsunade-sama," Sakura asked as she frowned. "You mentioned it before that it wouldn't be good for us to be hiding in Earth Country, let alone near Iwagakure. Why is that?"

"Another time," Tsunade grunted as she saw several sets of eyes focusing in on them. "Now where did you find that house Naruto? My legs are getting tired from walking this far."

"We have to go through the village," Naruto replied and started walking deeper into the small lumber town. "The house sits by a lake and is about a thirty minute walk away."

"Great," Tsunade muttered sarcastically and slowly inched forward.

"Shishou," Sakura whispered softly. "He is trying to make you happy and proud. Why are you being so hard on him?"

"I know that," Tsunade snapped back in a whisper as she frowned. "It's just too dangerous here for him and for us. We would be killed if they found out who we are, especially if they knew about… No I can't speak about this here."

"About what?" Sakura asked with a hint of anger. "Shishou you've been like this since we left Katsuyu's realm. Why didn't you tell us there what is bothering you so much?"

"Later," Tsunade grunted. "I will tell you later tonight. Now let us catch up with those two energy bundles that are your husband and daughter."

Later in the day, as the sun was slowly setting behind the distant mountain range, Naruto and Sakura stood in front of the small house that they now called their new home. It was their luck that one of Naruto's shadow clones was able to buy the house cheaply with the money from the Bounty they had collected in Kumogakure over two years ago. The building was in need of some dire repairs as the roof had accumulated several leaks over the years of neglect and Naruto's shadow clones had quickly dispatched of those needed immediate repairs.

"It's quite beautiful here," Sakura said softly as she had her arms wrapped around Naruto.

They were currently watching the sunset and watched the orange sun rays bounce off the crystal clear lake ahead of them. The sky was painted a fiery orange as flocks of birds flew towards their resting places for the night.

"It sure is," Naruto said and tilted his head and kissed the top of Sakura's head. "C'mon let us go inside. Baa-chan wants to talk to us and I am sure Ino-chan is driving her insane already."

Sakura chuckled at Naruto's remark, "Like father like daughter."

"Hey now! What's that supposed to mean?" Naruto shouted quietly but smiled.

"Love you," Sakura quickly said and kissed him before rushing away from him while laughing.

Naruto chuckled and shook his head as he thought, "_I'll get you for that tonight Sakura-chan."_

He followed her and entered the small house and came to a stop when he saw Tsunade sitting in the corner of the living room and looking very grim.

"We need to talk Naruto."

"Sure," Naruto replied and closed the door behind him. He walked over to the table and pulled two chairs out and carried them over towards Tsunade's corner. "Where is Sakura-chan?"

"She is checking up on little Ino," Tsunade said and studied her hands that were neatly folded upon her lap.

They waited several minutes until Sakura quietly exited the small room that had been claimed by Ino the minute they had reached the small lake-side house.

"Sorry," Sakura apologized. "Ino didn't want to go to sleep until I told her a story."

"It is fine," Tsunade mumbled and waited for Sakura to take the empty chair next to Naruto. "What I am going to tell you two now is an S-rank secret amongst our village."

Both Naruto's and Sakura's eyes widened slightly and shared a brief glance before nodding for Tsunade to continue.

"The reason behind my vehement standpoint against using Earth Country and the shadow of Iwagakure as a hiding place for us lies within the simple fact of Naruto's appearance."

"Wait a minute Shishou," Sakura interrupted her aging mentor. "I don't think I quite follow you. You are afraid that people here might recognize Naruto? But why, he isn't well-known and his Jinchuuriki status is a village secret. Wouldn't it make more sense that people might recognize you or in fact me?"

"Not quite," Tsunade answered and looked at Naruto, who had remained eerily quiet. "Senju Tsunade is known almost everywhere but only as a woman that hides her age behind a Genjutsu. My real me is only known to a handful of people, to which I count you two. However, you are correct to assume that you might be recognizable, considering your unique hair color Sakura. Yet, even that connection might only be made if people were to find out that you are from Fire Country and figure out that you dye your hair. And of those people, only shinobi with the in-depth knowledge of enemy ninjas had an inkling of such knowledge. Again we are only speaking of a few individuals, mainly Jounins and ANBU that are tasked with keeping taps on Kages and their apprentices."

"Why me?" Naruto suddenly asked as he looked to the ground. "Why would they recognize me?"

"Because you are becoming more and more a spitting image of your father," Tsunade softly answered.

"Y-you knew my father?" Naruto suddenly asked. His voice was laced with surprise and anger. "Why didn't you ever tell me? Who was he? Is he still alive? What happened to him?"

"Shishou?" Sakura questioned her next as the pinkette realized that Tsunade was softly sobbing.

When Tsunade's aged honey-brown eyes that were filled with water looked up into Naruto's expression, the aging woman shook her head sadly. "Naruto your father, he, he was a great man. He loved your mother and Konoha dearly. He cherished his home and protected it with all of his might. His strength alone drove Iwagakure to the brink of destruction during the Third Great Ninja War and his name is cursed amongst these lands we now call our home. The utterance of his name brings instant death for it reminds the people of Earth Country and Iwagakure of their most shameful moment in history, a moment where a single Leaf shinobi annihilated Iwa's armies."

Tsunade paused briefly and closed her eyes as she remembered. "I can still hear the wails of the slaughtered Rock shinobi as they lay defeated in the dirt. Lying in their own pools of blood as their throats had been cut or limbs had been severed and as Iwa's armies were cut to pieces in a battle that didn't last for more than a few minutes, it ended with your father kneeling on a small mount in the middle of the carnage that had become the battlefield. Crying into your mother's arms and apologizing to her for the horrors he had committed."

"He was a simple man Naruto," Tsunade continued as tears slowly ran down her cheeks. "He only wanted to live in peace and harmony but he also knew that sometimes sacrifices had to be made. And it was on that day, a day that was his personal nightmare, while for others' it was considered to be his greatest achievement that he earned the name of _Konoha's Yellow Flash_."

_**THUMB**_

"Sakura-chan," Naruto yelled out in worry as the young woman fell of the chair in shock. He quickly bolted off his chair and immediately rushed to her side. "Are you alright Sakura-chan? Are you feeling sick? Is there anything I can do for you?"

A small groan was all Sakura could muster as an answer as she held a hand to her head as her mind processed everything that Tsunade had just told them. She looked up into Naruto's worried face that hovered inches away from hers and finally offered a short nod, letting him know she was fine. She was relieved upon seeing his expression lighten and she graciously took his helping hand in rising from the floor. She took her seat again and locked eyes with Tsunade.

"Well," Tsunade said a tad bit surprised. "I would be lying were I to deny that I hadn't expected that reaction, however, I had expected Naruto-kun to be the one on the floor and not you Sakura-chan."

Flustered, Sakura cleared her throat. "I was simply overwhelmed with Naruto's heritage. Never in my wildest dreams had I imagined Naruto-kun be the son of the Yondaime Hokage."

"Whaaaaat? I am the son of who?" Naruto suddenly yelled out that surprised both Sakura and Tsunade.

"Baka," Sakura muttered as she shook her head at seeing Naruto's bewildered expression.

A soft laughter drew both hers and Naruto's attention and they saw Tsunade laughing into her hand. "Naruto you idiot, weren't you listening to everything that I had just been telling you?"

Naruto sheepishly brushed the back of his head and grinned, "Sorry Baa-chan, you lost me at big battle and my father supposedly taking out all of Iwa's armies alone."

Sakura simply shook her head in dismay and muttered something eerily akin to not be surprised, while Tsunade blinked numerous times that only ended in more laughter, "Leave it to Naruto to space out and only listen to the 'cool' stuff in a story."

"Sorry," Naruto muttered apologetically. "So my dad really was the Yondaime Hokage?"

Tsunade nodded in confirmation. "Naruto you have to understand, this was kept a secret because your father had many enemies. Konoha was in danger after the Kyuubi attack and with the death of your father that day, we were extremely vulnerable and it was decided to keep your birth a secret from everyone, even the villagers. In order to stave off invasion, the need of the many was put before the need of an individual. I am sorry Naruto, I truly am but by you not knowing your heritage, you've been protecting Konoha and everyone you care for far longer than you ever thought possible."

"And what about my mother?" Naruto asked sharply and made it clear that he no longer wanted to hear about the many reasoning that existed in keeping his heritage hidden. "Where was she? What happened to her?"

"Your mother, Uzumaki Kushina," Tsunade began as she remembered her past days as if they were only yesterday. "She was a powerful kunoichi - a gem amongst gems, a beauty amongst the Leaf, and a real pain in the ass. You and her are actually very much alike, in ways you don't even know. However, I only know little about what happened to your mother during the Kyuubi attack but I do know that she died during childbirth."

"I understand," Naruto murmured and stood. He walked towards the door that lead to the outside and paused briefly with his hand resting on the door knob.

"Naruto there is more," Tsunade said. "About the Kyuubi and…"

"Why my father sealed the demon within me and not somebody else?" Naruto questioned without turning around. "Don't bother Baa-chan, I already understand and I would do the same thing."

And with those words, the door opened and Naruto vanished into the night, leaving behind a silent old woman and a young wife.

"Shishou what did he mean by that?" Sakura finally asked as she had collected herself again. Unknowingly, she had started crying as she had listened to Tsunade's tale. Her thoughts always centered upon Naruto and the harsh life he had lived alone. A life without knowing his parents, a life without knowing the warmth a mother could give to their child when it had a nightmare, a life with a father that would teach you jutsu or help you learn to read, or a life where he wasn't recognized for being the Kyuubi.

"The reason Minato sealed the Kyuubi inside Naruto is quite simple Sakura. Minato couldn't ask of any parent to sacrifice their child, without bringing forth the same. He chose Naruto because he didn't want to make a different family suffer his mistakes in protecting Konoha from the Kyuubi."

"I see," Sakura whispered in thought. She was trying to think herself into the position of Naruto's parents and wondered whether she could offer her own flesh and blood, her own little Ino-chan as a sacrifice in order to protect the village and keep a different family from this hardship of a life that would no doubt await them. And it surprised her that neither her heart nor her mind could give an answer to said question.

"You should go to him," Tsunade finally said and brought Sakura out of her musing. "He needs time but he shouldn't do this alone. His love, his wife should be with him and help him Sakura. Go to him and take him into your arms and comfort him. He will tell you what he needs from you in order to lessen his pain."

"Hai Shishou," Sakura answered meekly and walked towards the door.

"I hope you two finally understand why coming here was a dangerous and foolish idea. If Naruto's heritage comes to light, we are as good as dead." Tsunade told her before rising herself from the chair and turning towards the room that was hers. "I am going to bed Sakura but before you go to him, know this. Even though I am still against coming here, I know that this is the safest location for us to hide from the Leaf but please make Naruto understand that his heritage needs to be kept a secret. You can't let Ino-chan know, no matter what. Children tend to speak before they think and it could cost us all with our lives."

"Good night Tsunade-sama," Sakura responded a bit forced and angry. The pinkette, now with her hair dyed red, sighed and twisted the door knob and entered the cold night and began to look for her wayward husband and lover.

**XXXXXX**

Shikamaru quietly entered his home and breathed out a tired sigh as he leaned against the closed door. Closing his eyes, his mind replayed the events of tonight's Council and Shinobi meeting with the current Hokage Danzo.

"What's the matter lazy?"

Shikamaru's eyes slowly opened and wandered towards the voice of his wife as she stood leaning against the door frame that lead into the living room. "Troublesome," he muttered.

A soft smile spread across Temari's lips and she softly walked towards Shikamaru and tippy toed as she kissed him. "It's always troublesome with you Shika."

"It appears to be a recurring theme with me," Shikamaru muttered as his hands rested on Temari's hips.

"Yes," Temari replied playfully as she rested her head on his chest and pressed her body against his. "So are you going to tell me why you were locked away in Council meetings all day?"

"Now that's really troublesome," Shikamaru replied cryptically and pushed Temari away from him. He smiled at her and took her hand in his and led her towards the kitchen. "Let's eat first."

As two sat and ate together, Temari continuously watched Shikamaru out of the corner of her eyes, wondering whether she could discern anything from the way he held himself at dinner. She silently cursed as she was unable to break his mask. She eventually decided to give up and enjoy the meal as she held casual conversation with him.

Shikamaru suddenly smiled, "Giving up so soon?'

A quirk appeared upon Temari's face along with a scowl and she angrily placed her utensils on the table. She cleaned the corners of her mouth and locked eyes with Shikamaru. "And are you going to talk or are you going to keep me on the outside again?"

One of Shikamaru's eyebrows rose significantly higher than normally, "What are you talking about?"

"I am talking about your secret little club," Temari angrily continued as she stood up from her chair. "I don't like it when you keep secrets from me. We are married Shikamaru and we are not supposed to have secrets from one another. So you better start telling me what you are up to or I am packing my things and go back to Suna. At least there I am being respected for my strength and skills."

"Temari-chan," Shikamaru said and stood up. He pulled her into his arms and trapped her against his body. "I am trying to protect you. If Danzo finds out about this…"

"Nonsense," Temari growled as she rested her head on his chest. "I don't need protection. I am a capable kunoichi and besides, I am the Kazekage's sister. Danzo wouldn't dare do anything to me."

"You don't know him," Shikamaru sighed.

"I don't care," Temari said and looked up into his eyes. "At least tell me what todays meetings were about?"

Shikamaru briefly paused and eventually shook his head sadly. "Alright I tell you," he started but briefly paused. "We're going to war."

Temari blinked at him in confusion, "W-what?"

"Yea," Shikamaru muttered. "The Lords of Fire and Wind have decided to launch invasions upon the smaller countries surrounding us."

"You can't be serious," Temari hushed. "H-how can they just decide that?"

"They just do," he replied and an air of depression befell the two. "The Lords want war and we'll give it to them. And we're the ones that will have to pay for it with our lives as well."

"Troublesome," Temari muttered as she retreated into herself.

"You say it," Shikamaru chuckled and slowly lead her towards their living room and the couch. "Let's enjoy this last night of peace. Tomorrow we begin to train for war."

**XXXXXX**

Sakura found Naruto standing by the lake, looking out over the black water. She gently approached him and slung her arm around his frame as she rested her head on his shoulder. Nobody was saying anything for a while as they simply looked out over the water.

"A penny for your thoughts?" Sakura softly asked eventually.

"Hn," Naruto grunted.

"Oh," Sakura mouthed and turned her head to look into Naruto's eyes that were focused on her. A soft smile split her face, "I am sorry but it appears I have mistaken you for my husband. I had no idea that you had changed that much Sasuke-kun."

Naruto's frame suddenly shook from silent laughter. "I'll forgive you, this once," Naruto said in jest.

Not wanting to get caught up in Naruto's theatric avoidance tactic, Sakura nudged him quite strongly as she lifted one of her brows. "How are you holding up Naruto-kun? Do you want to talk about this?"

"I am fine," Naruto finally answered as he had fallen silent again momentarily. "It's weird really. I know I should be feeling delighted at finally being told about my parents or even feel angry at them for pushing this burden upon me but I don't feel anything. There is absolutely no reaction within me."

"Are you sure?" Sakura asked a bit worried. "Maybe you're still in shock and you need more time to realize everything first."

Naruto shook his head, "No that's not it. I think if I were to try and describe the feeling I am having right now, I would have to use the word 'peace'. I feel at peace Sakura-chan. I've never felt this calm in my life before."

"You could be relieved too," Sakura offered and took one of Naruto's hands into her own. "You finally know about your true heritage and it is possible that not knowing your parent's identity, has always weighed you down psychologically."

"Sure, I guess," Naruto replied but it was close to obvious that he wasn't entirely convinced.

Another silence fell upon the two as they looked into each other's eyes. "Naruto before you left… Would you really?"

"Yes," Naruto replied and pulled her into an embrace. "If that were the only option, I would seal the Kyuubi within our own child and not have anyone else suffer that fate. But rest assured Sakura-chan that will never happen. The Kyuubi is locked within me until the day I die."

"I am not worried," Sakura mumbled into his chest as her head was rested against it. "I would lie if I said that I weren't against sealing the Kyuubi into our daughter, however, I know that if it were ever to come to a situation like this, I think, no I hope that I will do the right thing and support you with all my strength."

"It's fine Sakura-chan," Naruto said and gently rubbed her back. "I'll make sure nobody is ever going to suffer from the Bijuu again."

"Naruto don't," Sakura interrupted him. "Stop trying to protect the world from all evil. I need you Naruto, your family needs you, and when we get Konoha back, the Leaf will need you too."

"Let's go to bed," Naruto said ignoring Sakura. "We'll have a lot to do to fix up the house and I need to find a job as well."

"Naruto," Sakura called him as he was already walking away from her. "Fine," Sakura muttered in anger at the realization that he would ignore her further. She followed him into the small house that they called their home now and entered their bedroom. They undressed and without saying their good nights, Sakura lay down and turned her back towards Naruto and awaited the next day.

**XXXXXX**

_2 years later_

Sakura stood in the kitchen and was busying over the cooking stove as she prepared lunch for her family. She looked out of the kitchen window and saw Tsunade sitting in the rocking chair that Naruto had built for her. A soft smile spread across Sakura's face as she remembered how Naruto had taken months to build a working rocking chair. It had taken countless attempts, a never ending string of curses, and quite a few slaps against the back of his head but after six months, Naruto had finally succeeded.

Tsunade had been overjoyed at the present and was sitting within said chair every day enjoying the lake view from the small dock that Naruto had built first after the house had been fixed. And there, the aging Godaime Hokage was sitting there once again, most likely napping in the soft sun rays of fall season.

"Mama," Ino softly spoke up as she clutched Sakura's leg. "What are you cooking today?"

Sakura looked down at her roughly four year daughter that had become a small version of her younger self and gently picked her up and sat her down on the kitchen counter. "I am making your father's favorite."

"Ramen? Again?" Ino objected with a pout as she crossed her arms. "I don't like Ramen."

Sakura chuckled and lovingly ruffled her daughter's hair. "I know sweetie but Naruto-kun loves it and we don't want a grumpy father now do we?"

"No," Ino muttered as she was still pouting.

"I'll make Dango tomorrow," Sakura offered to placate her daughter. "I promise."

"Yay Dango!" Ino shouted and was ready to bounce off the walls in a typical Naruto fashion.

Sakura simply shook her head as she chuckled at her daughter's antics. In so many ways, Ino was so much like her father it was practically scary, however, Naruto had confided with her once that he thought that Ino-chan was as scary as Sakura was when angry.

And as Ino assaulted Sakura with questions about Dango, the constant rhythm of chopping vegetables filled the kitchen as Sakura listened and replied to her daughter's intelligent mind. Sakura was brought out of her flow when she suddenly heard hectic loud hammering at the door of her house. She frowned and placed down the knife and turned to her daughter.

"Ino I want you to run out the backdoor and go to Baa-chan," Sakura said and helped Ino off the kitchen counter. She walked her towards the door and opened it. "Go to Baa-chan and stay with her until I come and get you two."

"Can I go swimming in the lake?" Ino asked excitingly seemingly oblivious to the aggravated hammering at the front door of the house.

"Well," Sakura started as she turned around to look towards her front door as it shook from the constant hammering against it. "As long as Baa-chan is awake and allows it. Now off you go and remember, I will come and get you."

"Thanks Mom," Ino shouted and quickly ran towards the lake and towards Tsunade.

"_Now, who might be at the front door,"_ Sakura thought as she quickly left the kitchen to answer the door.

Sakura abruptly opened the door and her eyes grew wide in shock as she was suddenly face to face with a blood soaked Iwa Genin. Sakura blinked in confusion and only came to again when she realized that the young boy was pulling on her arm.

"What?" Sakura asked as she finally registered the boy was frantically yelling at her.

"Please you have to help me," the boy yelled. "My team, we were attacked, and my Sensei is fighting them but…"

"Are you hurt?" Sakura asked him as she studied his panicked face.

"No," he shook his head and Sakura could tell he was at the brink of tears. "This isn't my blood. It belonged to one of the enemies. Sensei got him as he was trying to kill me."

"Where is the rest of your team?" Sakura asked next as she bit her lip. _"Damn what am I going to do? I can't use my shinobi skills or else they will find out about us."_

"Please lady, you have to come and help me." The boy pulled at Sakura's hand again. "I don't know if there are any doctors around here but you ought to know if there are. Please…"

"Right," Sakura said and stepped out of the house as she made a decision to help. She closed the door behind her and turned to the boy, "Lead me to your team. I have some medical knowledge."

"Oh thank Kami," the boy screamed and started running and pulled Sakura behind him. "It's not that far but please we have to hurry."

As Sakura was pulled through the wild woods surrounding the small lumber town that they had chosen as their new home, her mind was focused at the problem in front of her. She had debated whether to just kill the boy and shrug herself of any responsibility. She had argued that idea with a simple explanation of needing to defend her family but a sudden image of Sasuke that had flashed in front of her mind's eye had quickly crushed that idea.

Sakura mentally shook her head and felt a cold feeling run down her spine as she remembered Sasuke's sneering face as she had debated of killing the young Iwa Genin in front of her.

"_I can't,"_ Sakura mused depressed. _"Killing in cold blood is something Sasuke would do. I… Damn what should I do?"_

"We're almost there," the young Genin suddenly spoke in a whisper as he slowed and pulled out a half broken kunai. "We need to be careful. I don't know if Sensei was able to dispatch all of the enemy ANBU."

"ANBU?" Sakura exclaimed in shock and her senses instantly became alert. _"Damn it, if we run into them… Kami please, please don't force me to jeopardize my family's safety."_

"ANBU are one of the strongest ninja a hidden village has," the young Genin explained. "But rest assured, my Sensei used to be Iwa's ANBU Head-Captain, he won't be defeated this easily."

"O-okay," Sakura replied with unease. _"Why is my luck running out?"_ She thought angrily. _"Not only might I have to fend of enemy ANBU, the person I am supposed to help was one of Iwa's strongest ANBU. Damn, damn, damn… Tsunade-sama was right in saying Earth Country would be an unsafe hiding place."_

"SENSEI!" The young Genin suddenly yelled and rushed away as he and Sakura reached a small clearing.

Sakura hesitantly stopped at the edge of the clearing and studied the surroundings carefully. The clearing she was standing at wasn't a clearing at all, she realized as she saw countless of trees snapped in half. The ground was littered with impact craters that ranged from small to fairly large and her eyes immediately made out the scattered weapons all around her.

"Please," the boy called out to her and her attention went to the large man that lay on his back in the center of the clearing. "Sensei is still alive but he needs help."

Swallowing, Sakura hesitantly walked forward. Ever keeping a watchful eye on her surroundings, she attuned her senses to detection and she finally arrived by the fussing Genin and his sensei. She quickly knelt beside the man and studied his injuries.

"How bad is it?" The Genin asked and looked fearfully back and forth between Sakura and his teacher. "Will he live?"

"_Shit,"_ Sakura cursed in her mind as she took in the Iwa shinobi in front of her. Her eyes immediately recognized the fatal stomach wound that she knew she could heal easily and make it a non-fatal wound but that would reveal her in-depth knowledge of chakra and medic ninjutsu.

Sakura frowned as she realized that the Iwa nin had somehow miraculously no other real wound besides flesh wounds that would heal by itself and she then knew what kind of skilled shinobi was lying in front of her and she visibly swallowed.

"It's okay," the Genin said thinking Sakura's hesitation was a sign of her being afraid. "Sensei was briefly awake and told me that he had killed the enemy ANBU. You're safe here but please, can you safe sensei?"

"I-I'll do my best," Sakura said and she suddenly had an idea. She turned towards the Genin and smiled reassuringly. "Didn't you have teammates? Where are they?"

The young boy looked to the ground and Sakura could see tears within his eyes. She deflated and put a comforting hand on the boy's shoulder and was surprised when he jerked away from her contact. He looked at her with wide eyes and abruptly stood up. The boy looked north, away from the clearing and the direction from Sakura's house. "Akira was killed by the enemy ANBU and we were separated from her body as we defended ourselves. Ai, she, she ran towards Iwa saying she wanted to get help and I don't know if she made it. In the end Sensei and I were the only ones left and he had told me to run away myself."

The boy visibly trembled in pain and Sakura looked sorrowful at the young Genin and asked him. "Do you remember where Akira was killed?"

"Yes," the boy quietly replied.

"Why don't you go get her body so we can give her a proper burial" Sakura suggested. "I will take care of your sensei and I'll wait for you to return."

"And then what?" The boy asked in anger. "Akira is dead, Ai is probably dead herself, and Sensei is unconscious… what should I do? This was our first mission out of the Academy… What am I supposed to do?"

"You take one step at a time," Sakura said and hoped that would convince the boy to leave so she could quickly heal the shinobi's wounds to a degree that he wouldn't die without revealing her knowledge to the young Genin.

"C-can sensei and I stay with you?" The boy asked and sniffled. "Would you let us recover at your home?"

Sakura looked to the ground in thought and cursed herself, "Of course."

"Thank you," the boy said and ran north.

Sighing in relief, Sakura quickly turned towards the dying shinobi in front of her and quickly used a sedation jutsu on the Iwa-nin in order to ensure the man wouldn't suddenly wake up. After that she placed her glowing green hands over the stomach wound and willed the internal organs to repair themselves and flush out the poisonous fluids that were the stomach acid and bile. Once she was certain that his organs were repaired, she stopped her chakra flow and searched the shinobi for his emergency medical kit. Once she found it, she disinfected the wound with the Iodine and began to dress the wound.

She let out a heavy breath as she finished the last knot in her stitches. She made sure that it looked like someone with limited medical knowledge had sown up the ninja, while ensuring that the man wouldn't die.

"_I have to thank Shishou,"_ Sakura thought as she wiped her bloody hands on the skirt she was wearing. _"I always thought it was a waste of time of having to learn how to do these things without the use of chakra but it appears I was wrong."_

A small groan alerted her from the shinobi in front of her to wake up and placed her soft hand on the man's shoulder.

"Everything is going to be alright," Sakura softly spoke. "Don't move or the stitches will open up again."

"W-who are you?" The man asked as his eyes fluttered open and turned his head to look up into Sakura's face.

"Just someone that lives nearby and ran into one of your students'," Sakura said. "Who did this to you?"

"The enemy," the man responded shortly. "Who did you run into?"

"He didn't give me his name," Sakura answered. "He went to go look for his teammate's body."

"Thank Kami that he survived," the man whispered to which Sakura frowned. "I don't think I could forgive myself if something happened to the Tsuchikage's great grandson."

Sakura's eyes widened in surprise and fear, "You mean to tell me that boy is the Earth Shadow's great grandson?"

"Yes," the Iwa-nin spoke and groaned as he tried to sit up.

"I said not to move," Sakura said and pushed the man back down.

"Sensei!" the young voice of the boy echoed over the clearing and Sakura saw the boy carry a dead girl on his back as he approached. The boy put the girl to the ground and was immediately by Sakura's side. "Sensei it's me. How are you doing?"

"I am fine Katsuro," the man replied and smiled for reassurance. "You did great Katsuro. I am proud of you and so would be your mother and your great grandfather."

"No they wouldn't," Katsuro muttered and looked away dejectedly.

"Don't say that," the man said and Sakura realized that she was suddenly intruding on something personal. She silently stood up and walked over towards the dead kunoichi.

Sakura looked at the limb body of the young Genin and was filled with sorrow. She closed her eyes and whispered a silent prayer for the girl. She knelt and brushed the brown strands of the girl's hair out of the lifeless face and whispered, "You did good Akira. You died in the service of your village. I am sure your parents will be proud of your sacrifice."

"W-what are you doing?" Katsuro asked as he neared.

Sakura stood up and smiled softly at Katsuro. "I just spoke a silent prayer for Akira here and told her that her family would be proud for her service towards your village."

"No they won't," Katsuro muttered in anger and looked away in shame. "We Genin are nothing more than cannon fodder for our village. If we die too early, it is only looked upon as a shame on the family. Akira here didn't even have a family. She was just an orphan that fought her hardest to pass the Academy classes. She was a great ninja that shouldn't have died."

Sakura was shocked at hearing how Iwa handled their dead. Her mood turned sour as she continued to listen to Katsuro and she knelt so she could be at eye level with the young Genin. "You liked her a lot didn't you?"

Katsuro looked away and nodded his head in confirmation of Sakura's questions and said loudly for his sensei to hear, "No I didn't. I am not allowed to associate myself with a commoner."

Sakura sighed but smiled. "Why don't you carry Akira's body and I will handle your sensei."

"Okay," Katsuro mumbled and briefly looked at his dead teammate.

Sakura decided to let the boy grief and returned to his sensei. She helped him slowly to his feet and helped him lean on her for support. She grunted from the strain but her body quickly compensated for the sudden shift in weight. _"Wish I could use my chakra for this,"_ Sakura thought meekly. _"It would make this so much easier."_

"Thank you," Katsuro's sensei quietly spoke to her.

"I couldn't really let you die here," Sakura responded and slowly lead the way to her house.

"For that too," the Iwa-nin spoke. "But I was talking about Katsuro. He suffers greatly under the pressure that is put upon him by his family."

"Is it true what he said?"

"About us not honoring our fallen comrades?"

"Yes," Sakura answered.

"In a way it is true," the shinobi offered. "We are a militaristic society and strength is everything to us. And sometimes it happens when families cast out their members. We aren't proud of it but the Tsuchikage doesn't disapprove of it either."

"Sounds like a cruel man to me," Sakura said and navigated them through the forest. "I never caught your name?"

"Hisashi Takehiko," the man grunted in pain and Sakura's heart stopped in fear.

"_Of course I run into Iwa's Boulder,"_ Sakura whined in regret. _"I hope he doesn't figure out that we are Leaf shinobi. Oh Kami please save us!"_

"Is everything alright?" Takehiko asked in concern as he realized Sakura had fallen quiet.

"Yes," Sakura squeaked and cursed herself for her sudden nervousness. She decided to quickly use her nervousness and come up with an excuse, "I am just nervous because my husband can be quite the jealous type."

Takehiko laughed only to wince right away from pain. "Don't be afraid my dear, I am sure he is a reasonable man."

"You have no idea," Sakura muttered under her breath as she thought of Naruto's thick headedness.

"Mommy!" Sakura suddenly heard her daughter scream in joy and Sakura looked up and was surprised that she was already nearing her house. A small smile split her lips but turned to a frown as she saw Tsunade standing in front of the house, leaning on her cane and holding young Ino on the other hand.

"Damn," Sakura muttered as she saw Tsunade's frown.

"What is it?" Takehiko asked in confusion. "Is that your family?"

"Oh it's nothing," Sakura tried to placate him. "I just realized Ino's grandmother can be quite a pain when she is upset."

"Why would she be afraid?" Takehiko asked.

"Um…" Sakura quickly tried to come up with an explanation. "She doesn't like shinobi very much. She lost her fiancé and brother to the ninja world and has never recovered from that loss."

"I see," Takehiko murmured in thought. "I promise that Katsuro and I won't over extend our stay here."

"Mommy!" Ino shouted again and was now running with her arms wide open for Sakura. "Where have you been? Baa-chan and I were worried when we returned from swimming."

"I am sorry Ino-chan," Sakura said as she stopped with Takehiko leaning onto Sakura. "But this man needed my help and I couldn't just say no."

"Oh," Ino mouthed and looked with her huge blue eyes up at Takehiko. Her eyes widened in joy as they came to rest on the Iwa headband on his head. "Are you one of those ninja my daddy always talks about?"

"Yes I am," Takehiko answered with a smile. "My name is Hisashi Takehiko. It's a pleasure to meet you."

"I am U-Uzumaki Ino-chan," Sakura's daughter shouted in joy and suddenly looked behind Sakura and bounded off. "Hi! I am Ino-chan. Who are you?"

"Katsuro," the Genin grunted and Sakura could still hear sorrow in his voice.

"And who is that? Is she sick?" Ino pestered innocently.

"She is dead," Katsuro said and walked towards the house with Akira still in his arms and leaving Ino behind.

"Katsuro," Takehiko called after his student but didn't get a reaction. He turned towards Sakura, "I am sorry. I think it is best that you speak to your daughter and explain everything to her."

"She'll be fine," Sakura responded, shocking Takehiko in the process. "Ino-chan is as carefree as her father. See," she said and pointed in the direction young Ino had disappeared.

"She has already forgotten about it," Sakura said and she watched Ino hob towards Tsunade. "Let's go inside, you need to lie down and rest."

"Thank you again and I am sorry for the trouble we're bringing."

"Nonsense," Sakura said as she entered the house and directed him towards the living room. "You can use the sofa for now."

"Thanks," Takehiko said and grunted in pain as he slowly lay down. "Could I ask you of burying Akira?"

"I'll have my husband do it when he returns from the village," Sakura replied. "Now if you'll excuse me, I better check on my daughter and whether her grandmother is fine."

"Excuse me but why don't you call your mother by your name? Or is she the dreaded mother in law?"

Sakura chuckled and sighed inwardly, _"Damn it I was hoping I could get away from using names."_

Sakura stood by the door that lead outside and briefly looked towards the Iwagakure shinobi. "Tsunade isn't my mother or my husband's mother. She has been like an adopted mother to us and for Ino-chan she is simply her grandmother."

"I understand and I wish you good luck placating your mother."

"Heh," Sakura smiled. "Thanks."

Sakura walked through the door and closed it behind her. She briefly leaned against the door and rested her head against the wood and whispered to herself, "I think our luck is holding up pretty good so far. Let's hope it stays like that."

* * *

**A/N:** And that's it. Hope you liked it. Sorry for the many time skips but it'll slow down again. Next up... it's going to be a surprise.


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